THE  UNIVERSITY 
OF  ILLINOIS 


LIBRARY 

Oll.l'l 
U & 84  mo 

V.  I V s 


Return  this  book  on  or  before  the 
Latest  Date  stamped  below.  A 
charge  is  made  on  all  overdue 
books. 

University  of  Illinois  Library 


MAY  10  iS46 

DEC  G 1 19111 


t99t 


NOV  08 


u ^-LIBRARY  OF  CONGRESS 


NOTES  FOR  THE  LOUISIANA  PURCHASE  EXPOSITION 
ST.  LOUIS,  MO,  1904 

No.  1 


THE  LIBRARY 


And  its  Work 


WASHINGTON 

GOVERNMENT  PRINTING  OFFICE 

1904 


LIBRARY  STAFF. 


GENERAL  ADMINISTRATION. 

Herbert  Putnam. — Librarian  of  Congress. 

Ainsworth  Hand  Spofford. — Chief  Assistant  Librarian. 
Allen  Richards  Boyd. — Librarian’s  Secretary. 

Thomas  Gold  Alvord. — Chief  Clerk. 

DIVISIONS. 

Reading  Rooyns. — David  Hutcheson,  superintendent;  John  Gra- 
ham Morrison,  Hugh  Alexander  Morrison,  chief  assistants. 
Reading  Room  for  the  Blind. — Etta  Josselyn  Giffin,  assistant 
in  charge. 

Bibliography. — Appleton  Prentiss  Clark  Griffin,  Chief. 

Catalogue. — James  Christian  Meinich  Hanson,  Chief;  Charles  Mar- 
tel, Chief  Classifier. 

Documents. — Roland  Post  Falkner,  Chief. 

Manuscripts. — Worthington  Chauncey  Ford,  Chief. 

Maps  and  Charts. — Philip  Lee  Phillips,  Chief. 

Music. — Oscar  George  Theodore  Sonneck,  Chief. 

Order. — William  Parker  Cutter,  Chief. 

Periodicals.— Allan  Bedient  Slauson,  Chief. 

Prints. — Arthur  Jeffrey  Parsons,  Chief. 

Smithsonian  Deposit. — Paul  Brockett,  Custodian  (office  at  Smith- 
sonian Institution);  Francis  Henry  Parsons,  Assistant  in 
charge. 

Law  Library. — George  Winfield  Scott,  Custodian. 

COPYRIGHT  OFFICE. 

Thorvald  Solberg,  Register. 

LIBRARY  BRANCH,  GOVERNMENT  PRINTING  OFFICE. 

Printing. — William  Henry  Fisher,  foreman. 

Binding. — Henry  Clay  Espey,  foreman. 

Library  Building  and  Grounds. 

Bernard  Richardson  Green. — Superintendent. 

George  Norris  French,  Chief  Clerk. 

Charles  Benjamin  Titlow,  Chief  Engineer. 

Damon  Warren  Harding,  Electrician. 

John  Vanderbilt  Wiirdemann,  Captain  of  the  watch. 


2 


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THE  LIBRARY  OF  CONGRESS. 


The  Building. 

! t 

^ The  building  of  the  Library  of  Congress,  the  largest  and  most 
(4  costly  library  building  in  the  world,  is  located  on  Capitol  Hill,  a 
~~  quarter  of  a mile  east  of  the  Capitol. 

It  was  begun  1889  and  completed  1897  at  a cost  of  $6,347,000, 
exclusive  of  the  site,  which  cost  $585,000.  The  original  plans 
were  made  by  Messrs.  Smithmeyer  & Pelz,  but  the  building  was 
actually  constructed  and  many  architectural  details  worked  out 
under  Brig.  Gen.  Thomas  L.  Casey,  Chief  of  Engineers,  U.  S. 
Army,  and  his  chief  assistant,  Bernard  B.  Green.  After  the 
death  of  General  Casey,  in  1895t,  the  building  was  completed  under 
Mr.  Green,  now  its  Superintendent. 

The  building  occupies  3J  acres.  It  contains  7,500,000  cubic  feet 
of  space  and  over  8 acres  of  floor  space. 

Its  internal  arrangements  are  planned  to  secure  the  greatest 
protection  of  its  contents  from  loss  or  injury  which  is  consistent 
with  the  public  use  of  its  collections.  The  shelving  for  books  is 
metal  throughout,  combining  cleanliness  with  convenience.  For 
the  preservation  of  maps,  manuscripts,  and  prints  specially  con- 
structed cases  are  provided.  Steel  safes  of  special  design  and 
make  are  used  for  the  more  valuable  manuscripts.  All  parts  of 
the  building  are  patrolled  day  and  night. 

The  present  shelving  will  contain  about  2,000,000  volumes. 
Within  its  present  walls  the  building  contains  space  for  over 
- 3,000,000  volumes  without  curtailing  the  space  requisite  for  read- 
^>ers  or  exhibits.  With  stacks  in  the  courtyards,  its  capacity  can 
^ be  increased  to  over  7,000,000  volumes. 


3 


f 


It  has  space  at  present  for  a thousand  readers  at  a time. 

During  the  year  1902-3  it  was  visited  by  1,011,766  persons — an 
average  of  2,866  daily. 

The  Library. 

CHRONOLOGY. 

1800.  Established  as  a library  for  Congress  in  the  Capitol 
building. 

1814.  Destroyed  in  the  burning  of  the  Capitol  by  the  British. 

1815.  Reconstructed  by  the  purchase  of  the  library  of  ex-Presi- 
dent  Jefferson — about  7,000  volumes,  cost  $23,950. 

1851.  Partially  destroyed  by  fire  in  the  Capitol;  20,000  volumes 
were  saved  and  the  Library  replenished  by  special  expenditure  of 
$75,000. 

1846-1870.  One  copy  of  books,  etc.,  deposited  under  Copyright 
Law  sent  to  Library. 

1866.  Made  custodian  of  the  library  of  the  Smithsonian  Institu- 
tion, with  its  subsequent  accessions. 

1867.  Purchase  of  Peter  Force  collection  of  Americana. 

1870.  Made  Office  of  Copyright  for  the  United  States. 

1882.  Purchase  of  papers  of  the  Marquis  de  Rochambeau,  and 
gift  of  the  library  of  Joseph  M.  Toner. 

1897.  Removed  to  new  building. 

1898.  Gift  of  Gardiner  Greene  Hubbard  collection  of  prints. 

1903.  Gifts  of  the  papers  of  Andrew  Jackson  and  Martin  y an 

Buren.  Made  depository  of  historical  manuscripts  in  the  Execu- 
tive Departments  of  the  Government. 

PRESENT  COLLECTIONS. 

It  comprised  at  the  end  of  the  fiscal  year  (June  30,  1903)  about 
1,202,993  printed  books  and  pamphlets  (including  the  law  library 
of  94,609  volumes,  which,  while  a ’division  of  the  Library  of  Con- 
gress, still  remains  at  the  Capitol),  103,115  manuscripts,  69,814 
maps  and  charts,  366,616  pieces  of  music,  and  142,337  photographs, 
prints,  engravings,  and  lithographs. 


4 


RECENT  GROWTH. 


The  rapidity  of  its  development  is  shown  in  the  accessions  for 


the  year  1903,  which  were: 

Printed  books  and  pamphlets  (volumes) 88, 273 

Manuscripts  (pieces)  3, 583 

Maps  and  charts  (pieces) 4, 893 

Music  (pieces) - 21,105 

Prints  (pieces) - 15,335 

Miscellaneous 9, 696 


APPROPRIATIONS. 

Appropriations  for  1903  were,  for  salaries,  $323,739.33  (including 
$70,440  for  the  Copyright  Office,  wffiich  is  offset  by  fees  received); 
increase  of  Library,  $99,800;  contingent,  $7,300;  printing  and  bind-  ’ 
ing,  $185,000  (an  “allotment,”  i.  e.,  leave  to  order  work  to  this 
amount  at  the  Government  Printing  Office  and  its  branches  in  the 
Library  building) — to  be  expended  under  the  Superintendent  of 
Buildings  and  Grounds,  for  care  and  maintenance,  $77,245;  fuel, 
light,  and  miscellaneous,  $30,000;  furniture  and  shelving,  $45,000. 
Total,  all  purposes,  $768,084.33. 

ORGANIZATION. 

The  administration  of  the  Library  is  under  the  Librarian  of 
Congress.  He  is  appointed  by  the  President,  subject  to  confirma- 
tion by  the  Senate.  He  reports  direct  to  Congress,  to  which  he 
submits  annually  estimates  of  appropriations  required  for  the  main- 
tenance of  the  Library.  He  is  authorized  to  expend  the  appro- 
priations granted  by  law  for  the  purposes  designated,  to  appoint  all 
employees  of  the  Library  proper  and  the  Copyright  Office,  and  is 
authorized  to  make  rules  and  regulations  for  the  government  of 
the  Library.  In  addition  to  the  Copyright  Office,  the  Library 
includes  the  following  divisions,  each  under  the  supervision  of  a 
chief:  Order,  Catalogue,  Bibliography,  Reading  Room,  Periodical, 
Documents,  Manuscripts,  Maps,  Music,  Prints,  Smithsonian  De- 
posit, and  Law  Library;  and  two  divisions,  Mail  and  Supply  and 
Binding,  in  charge  of  assistants. 


5 


The  Copyright  Office  is  under  the  general  administration  of  the 
Librarian  of  Congress,  in  particular  charge  of  the  Register  of  Copy- 
rights. During  the  year  1902-3  there  were  97,979  entries  for  copy- 
right and  $68,874.50  received  in  fees — this  amount  more  than  off- 
setting the  cost  of  maintaining  the  office.  During  the  year  there 
were  177,519  articles  deposited  to  perfect  the  above  entries.  So 
far  as  desirable,  articles  so  deposited  are  drawn  up  into  the  Library 
to  form  a part  of  its  collection.  Others,  to  the  amount  of  nearly  a 
million,  remain  still  in  the  files  of  the  Copyright  Office. 

The  building  and  grounds  are  in  the  charge  of  a Superintendent, 
also  appointed  by  the  President  and  subject  to  confirmation  by 
the  Senate,  who  also  reports  direct  to  Congress.  He  submits 
estimates  for  the  care,  equipment,  and  maintenance  of  the  build- 
ings and  grounds,  and  disburses  the  appropriations  granted  for 
these  purposes. 

SERVICE. 

There  are  employed  in  the  building,  under  the  Superintendent, 
120  persons;  under  the  Librarian,  297;  under  the  Public  Printer, 
but  detailed  to  the  Library  of  Congress  for  its  printing,  binding, 
and  repairing,  76  persons. 

USE. 

The  Library  was  originally  established  for  the  use  merely  of 
Congress.  It  aids  with  research  and  the  loan  of  books  all  branches 
of  the  Federal  Government,  the  Supreme  Court,  the  Executive 
Departments,  and  the  various  scientific  Bureaus  which  are  main- 
tained by  the  Federal  Government  at  an  annual  expense  of  several 
million  dollars,  and  whose  investigations  constantly  require  a 
reference  to  books. 

Though  still  carrying  the  title  “ Library  of  Congress,”  it  is  also 
now  a general  public  library,  open  as  freely  for  reference  use  as 
any  in  the  world.  Since  its  removal  to  the  new  building  its  col- 
lections and  its  service  have  so  extended  that  it  is  now  familiarly 
entitled  the  National  Library.  Any  person  from  any  place  may 
examine  within  its  walls  any  book  in  its  possession,  and  may  do 
this  without  introduction  or  credentials.  The  Library  is  open 


6 


from  9 a.  m.  till  10  p.  m. ; on  Sundays  and  most  holidays  from  2 
till  10  p.  m. 

Books  for  home  use  are  issued  to  certain  classes  designated  by 
statute  and,  within  the  District  of  Columbia,  in  effect  to  any  per- 
son engaged  in  a serious  investigation  which  absolutely  requires  it. 

Of  late  the  Library  has  also  lent  books  to  other  libraries  in 
various  parts  of  the  United  States  for  the  convenience  of  investi- 
gators engaged  in  research  calculated  to  advance  the  boundaries 
of  knowledge.  This  is  under  a system  of  inter-library  loan.  A 
condition  of  the  loan  is  that  the  book  is  an  unusual  book,  which  it  is 
not  the  duty  of  the  local  library  to  supply,  and  that  it  can  at  the 
moment  be  spared  by  the  Library  of  Congress,  and  that  the  risk 
and  expense  of  transportation  shall  be  borne  by  the  borrowing 
library. 

For  the  convenience  of  investigators  the  Library  deposits  in  some 
twenty-five  cities  (centers  of  research)  a complete  set  of  its  printed 
cards  as  issued.  These  will,  within  five  years,  form  a complete  card 
catalogue  under  authors  of  the  printed  books  in  its  collections. 

It  also  supplies  to  any  library  subscribing  for  them  one  or  more 
copies,  as  may  be  desired,  of  any  of  the  catalogue  cards  which  it 
prints,  thus  enabling  the  subscribing  library  to  get,  at  a nominal 
cost,  complete  catalogue  entries  for  books  in  its  own  collections 
which  would  cost  several  times  as  much  to  catalogue  independ- 
ently. Nearly  400  libraries  are  now  subscribing  to  such  cards. 

The  library  also  aids  investigators  by  publications  exhibiting 
material  in  its  collections  upon  topics  under  current  discussion,  or 
within  fields  of  special  research.  It  answers  inquiries  addressed 
to  it  by  mail  in  so  far  as  they  can  be  answered  by  bibliographic 
information — that  is,  by  a reference  to  printed  authorities.  The 
number  of  such  inquiries  yearly  exceeds  10,000. 

Publications.1 

The  publications  issued  by  the  Library  are  very  numerous  and 
include: 

Annual  Reports,  showing  the  progress  of  the  Library. 


1 Complete  lists  of  the  Library  publications  are  sent  on  application  to  the 
Librarian. 

7 


Bibliographies,  exhaustive  statements  of  the  literature  of  certain 
subjects,  e.  g.,  Philippine  Islands. 

Reference  Lists,  containing  principal  references  to  questions  of 
current  interest,  e.  g.,  Trusts,  Subsidies,  Porto  Rico,  etc. 

Catalogues,  lists  of  special  collections  in  the  Library  of  Congress, 
e.  g.,  Washington  MSS.,  John  Paul  Jones  MSS.,  Maps  of  Amer- 
ica, Newspapers. 

Special  publications  on  library  methods,  e.  g.,  Catalogue  rules, 
Classification,  etc. 

Printed  catalogue  cards  (see  above). 

OTHER  LIBRARIES  AT  WASHINGTON. 

The  Library  of  Congress  is  but  one  of  over  a score  of  Govern- 
ment libraries  at  Washington.  There  are  in  the  various  Depart- 
ments and  scientific  bureaus  of  the  Government  collections  aggre- 
gating over  a million  volumes.  Certain  of  these  are  preeminent 
in  the  world  within  the  field  with  which  they  deal.  With  them, 
the  Library  of  Congress  is  seeking  to  form  an  organic  system.  It 
will  be  this  system  rather  than  the  Library  of  Congress  alone 
which  will  comprise  the  National  Library  of  the  United  States. 
In  number  of  volumes  it  would  already  equal  any  other  library 
in  the  world. 

BOOKS  RELATING  TO  LIBRARY  OF  CONGRESS. 

Published  by  the  Library: 

Reports  of  the  Librarian  of  Congress,  1897-1903. 

(The  Report  for  1901  contains  a Manual  of  the  Constitution, 
Organization,  Methods,  etc. , of  the  Library. ) 

History  of  the  Library  of  Congress,  by  W.  D.  Johnston. 

Vol.  1,  1800-1864,  in  press. 

Published  by  private  publishers  for  sale: 

Handbook  of  the  Library  of  Congress,  by  Herbert  Small. 

Boston,  Curtis  and  Cameron.  Price,  25  cents. 

May  20,  1904. 

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NOTES  FOR  THE  LOUISIANA  PURCHASE  EXPOSITION 
ST.  LOUIS,  MO.,  J904 

No.  2 


THE  EXHIBIT 

OF  THE 

Library  of  Congress 

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WASHINGTON 

GOVERNMENT  PRINTING  OFFICE 
1904 


UNIVERSITY  OF  ILLINOIS 
LIBRARY 

BOOK,  . CLASS  VOLUME 


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Vy  2. 


The  Library  of  Congress  Exhibit. 

% 

The  Library  of  Congress  exhibit  is  found  in  the  northeast 
corner  of  the  United  States  Government  Building  immedi- 
ately at  the  entrance.  It  occupies  both  sides  of  the  aisle  and 
is  arranged  as  shown  in  the  following  diagram: 


Small  letters  indicate  wall  exhibits;  capitals,  cases. 


a.  Library  of  Congress,  photographs. 

b.  Foreign  Libraries. 

c.  American  Libraries. 

d.  Statistical  Charts. 

e.  Picture  Bulletins. 

A.  Model  of  Library  of  Congress. 

B.  Books. 

C.  Manuscripts. 

D.  Music. 

E.  Maps. 

F.  Prints. 

G.  Publications. 


H.  Bindings. 

/.  Forms. 

K.  American  Libraries,  plans  and 

photographs. 

L.  Printed  Cards  of  Library  of  Con- 

gress. 

M.  Printed  Cards  of  Institut  Inter- 

nationale de  Bibliographic. 

N.  Library  Commissions. 

O.  Library  Schools. 

P.  Library  blanks  and  forms. 

( Q . A girder  supporting  the  roof.) 


w 


The  exhibit  is  designed  to  illustrate — 

1.  The  equipment,  resources,  and  methods  of  the  Library 
of  Congress. 

2.  Its  relations  to  the  national  libraries  of  the  world. 

3.  Its  relations  to  the  libraries  of  the  United  States. 

4.  Some  features  of  modern  library  methods. 

Equipment. 

The  building  of  the  Library  of  Congress  is  shown  bv 
numerous  photographs,  plans,  and  a model.  A large  photo- 
graph of  the  exterior  on  the  girder  in  the  left-hand  space 
faces  tue  model. 

THE  MODEL. 

The  central  feature  of  the  exhibit  is  a model  of  the  build- 
ing on  the  scale  of  one-fourth  inch  to  the  foot  and  is  the 
work  of  Mr.  James  F.  Earley,  of  Washington.  It  ft  a sec- 
tional model  on  a north  and  south  line  showing  the  eastern 
half  of  the  building.  In  the  center  is  the  octagonal  reading 
room  showing  on  the  floor  the  central  desk,  the  catalogue 
cases  behind  it,  and  the  circular  arrangement  of  desks  for 
readers,  and  many  of  the  architectural  details  of  the  room. 
Visitors  to  the  Library,  not  readers,  are  admitted  to  the  upper 
gallery.  Flanking  the  reading  room  on  the  east  side  are  the 
two  great  book  stacks  each  nine  stories  high.  The  auto- 
matic book  carrier,  by  which  books  are  carried  in  baskets 
attached  to  an  endless  chain  from  the  decks  to  the  reading 
room,  is  indicated  on  the  right-hand  side.  On  the  extreme 
right  are  shown  the  three  stories  of  the  outer  structure, 
each  communicating  with  the  stack.  The  basement  contains 
the  Copyright  Office,  the  first  floor  the  Periodical  Reading- 
Room,  the  second  floor  the  Division  of  Prints.  The  arrange- 
ment of  rooms  at  the  left  of  the  model  is  the  same.  The 


4 


basement  here  contains  the  Printing  Office,  the  first  floor  the 
Division  of  Maps  and  Charts,  while  the  second  floor  contains 
a book  stack  recently  constructed  which  shows  possibilities 
of  expansion. 

Plans  and  Photographs. 

The  plans  of  the  Library  will  be  found  on  the  partition 
wall  behind  the  model.  The  photographs  in  the  upper  row 
are  of  the  second  story  arranged  in  the  order  noted  on  the 
plan.  The  pictures  of  the  first  story  in  the  lower  row  are 
arranged  in  like  manner.  Those  of  the  basement  story  are 
on  the  side  wall  between  the  windows. 

Decorations. 

The  numerous  decorations  of  the  Library  of  Congress  are 
represented  by  the  Minerva  of  Elihu  Vedder,  which  is  on  the 
girder  toward  the  aisle,  and  the  series  of  pictures  portray- 
ing the  Evolution  of  the  Book,  by  John  W.  Alexander,  which 
form  a frieze  for  the  partition  wall  at  the  rear  of  the  model. 
Suggestions  of  some  of  the  other  decorations  are  found  in  the 
photographs  of  the  several  divisions  of  the  Library  already 
noted. 

Resources. 

The  resources  of  the  great  collections  of  the  Library  of 
Congress  are  suggested  by  small  exhibits  from  the  various 
departments. 


BOOKS. 

A collection  of  photographs  illustrating  the  various  forms 
of  book,  early  imprints,  and  rare  books  especially  relating 
to  America.  (Diagram  B .) 


5 


MANUSCRIPTS. 


A collection  of  journals  and  sketches  of  Baron  von  Closen, 
aide-de-camp  to  Rochambeau,  which  by  reason  of  their  great 
interest  in  connection  with  the  history  of  the  Revolution  have 
been  loaned  for  exhibition  by  the  present  owner,  Baron  von 
Closen-Giinderrode,  of  Bavaria,  are  found  in  the  central  case. 
In  the  wing  frame  are  shown  specimens  from  some  of  the 
notable  collections  in  the  Library,  such  as  the  Jackson,  Web- 
ster, Polk,  Chase  papers,  etc.  This  case  also  shows  the 
interesting  method  of  repairing  manuscripts  for  permanent 
preservation.  (Diagram  C.) 

MUSIC. 

Specimens  of  ancient  music,  early  American  books  on 
music,  and  of  war  songs.  (Diagram  D.) 

MAPS  AND  CHARTS. 

Maps  showing  the  first  records  of  the  new  world,  the 
gradual  development  of  knowledge  concerning  the  territory 
of  the  Louisiana  Purchase,  and  plans  of  the  city  of  New 
Orleans.  (Diagram  £.) 

PRINTS. 

A collection  of  portraits  of  Thomas  Jefferson  which 
show  the  different  conceptions  of  artists  and  engravers. 
(Diagram  F .)  j 

METHODS. 

The  forms  and  blanks  used  in  the  general  administration 
of  the  Library  and  in  its  several  divisions  are  shown  in  a 
large  album  (Diagram  /). 


6 


Bindings. 


The  various  types  of  binding  in  use  in  the  Library  and 
some  of  the  processes  of  binding  are  shown  in  the  case  near 
the  front  wall.  In  each  book  is  an  explanation  of  the  char- 
acter of  the  material  used  and  the  types  of  books  for  which 
it  is  employed  (Diagram  H). 

PUBLICATIONS. 

The  publications  of  the  Library  since  1897  are  shown  in 
an  adjoining  case.  The  bindings  of  these  books  are  among 
the  choicest  products  of  the  bindery  (branch  of  the  Gov- 
ernment Printing  Office)  installed  in  the  Library  Building 
(Diagram  G). 

CATALOGUING. 

The  evolution  of  the  catalogue  from  the  printed  book, 
through  the  manuscript  card  to  the  printed  card,  is  shown 
in  the  right-hand  space  (Diagram  L).  The  exhibit  shows 
the  older  catalogues  of  the  Library  of  Congress,  and  a com- 
plete set  of  the  printed  cards  now  issued  by  the  Library. 
It  includes  in  alphabetical  arrangement  all  cards  thus  far 
issued.  It  shows  their  adaptation  to  shelf  lists  and  other 
special  catalogues.  Particular  attention  is  given  to  the 
method  of  distributing  these  cards  at  a nominal  cost  to 
other  libraries,  and  an  attendant  is  in  charge  to  give  full 
explanations  of  all  details  of  the  process. 

RELATIONS  TO  OTHER  LIBRARIES. 

The  great  national  libraries  of  Europe  and  some  of  the 
newer  and  more  recent  library  structures  of  the  Continent 
are  shown  in  a series  of . photographs  (Diagram  b ).  Wher- 
ever possible,  plans  have  been  secured,  and  have  been  repro- 
duced on  a uniform  scale  of  twenty  feet  to  the  inch,  thus 
showing  relative  size.  To  facilitate  comparison  of  structure 
and  size,  a plan  of  the  Library  of  Congress  on  the  same 
scale  is  placed  with  them. 


7 


RELATIONS  TO  AMERICAN  LIBRARIES. 

BUILDINGS 

A series  of  enlarged  photographs  and  plans  of  the  more 
important  American  libraries  of  recent  construction  is  shown 
in  the- right-hand  space.  The  plans  of  these  libraries  (except 
the  detailed  plans  of  the  New  York  Public  Library)  are  on 
the  uniform  scale  of  ten  feet  to  the  inch.  A plan  of  the 
Library  of  Congress  on  the  same  scale  is  placed  with  them 
for  comparison. 

With  the  cooperation  of  the  American  Library  Associa- 
tion a large  collection  of  typical  American  libraries  has  been 
made  and  is  exhibited  in  the  wing  frames  of  the  right-hand 
space  (Diagram  K).  The  sequence  of  arrangement  is  Gov- 
ernment libraries,  college  and  university  libraries,  and  public 
libraries.  The  latter  are  arranged  according  to  the  size  of 
the  libraries  for  all  having  40,000  volumes  or  more.  Smaller 
libraries  are  arranged  in  the  order  of  cost  of  their  library 
buildings.  The  labels  give  condensed  statistics  of  the 
libraries  represented. 


DECORATIONS. 

The  notable  decorations  of  the  Boston  Public  Library  are 
recalled  by  enlarged  Copley  prints  of  the  familiar  frieze  of  the 
Prophets  by  John  A.  Sargent,  and  the  pictures  from  the  Quest 
of  the  Holy  Grail  by  Edwin  Abbey,  which  have  been  placed 
at  the  disposal  of  the  Library  for  exhibit  through  the  courtesy 
of  the  publishers,  Messrs.  Curtis  & Cameron,  Boston,  Mass. 
'Diagram  e .) 

STATISTICS. 

Charts  showing  the  growth  of  librares,  the  diffusion  of 
libraries,  the  distribution  of  libraries  of  50,000  volumes  and 
ihose  of  10,000  volumes,  and  the  general  statistics  of  libraries 
m 1900,  are  compiled  from  the  reports  of  the  U.  S.  Bureau  of 
Education.  A chart  showing  circulation  in  1903  of  libraries 
issuing  at  least  300,000  volumes  for  home  use  is  based  upon 
data  furnished  by  the  librarians.  A large  chart  showing  the 


8 


distribution  and  size  of  Mr.  Andrew  Carnegie’s  gifts  to 
libraries  is  based  upon  published  reports  and  correspondence 
with  the  several  localities  concerned.  (Diagram  d .) 

LIBRARY  METHODS. 

CATALOGUING. 

Cooperative  cataloguing  as  shown  by  the  printed  cards 
of  the  Library  of  Congress  is  further  illustrated  by  the 
cards  and  publications  of  the  American  Library  Association 
and  the  Institut  Internationale  de  Bibliographie  of  Brussels. 
The  latter  are  notable  as  an  effort  to  create  a universal 
bibliography  of  all  knowledge. 

The  John  Crerar  Library  of  Chicago,  by  a specimen  from 
its  catalogue,  illustrates  its  methods  of  utilizing  its  printed 
cards. 

The  Grosvenor  Library  of  Buffalo  shows  a condensed 
form  of  slip  shelf  list  (Diagram 

GENERAL. 

General  library  methods  of  administration  are  shown  by 
a comparison  of  the  blanks  in  use  in  about  forty  leading 
libraries  (Diagram  P ). 

PICTURE  BULLETINS. 

Methods  of  attracting  the  attention  of  readers  in  general 
circulating  libraries  to  books  on  particular  subjects  are  showi) 
in  the  picture  bulletins  prepared  by  the  several  schools  for 
library  training  (Diagram  e ). 

Library  Schools. 

The  work  of  library  schools  is  shown  by  a collection  of 
photographs,  blanks,  and  other  printed  matter  (Diagram  O). 

Library  Commissions. 

The  work  of  the  library  commissions  is  shown  by  charts 
showing  growth  of  libraries,  photographs  of  typical  libraries, 
blanks,  publications,  and  by  sample  traveling  libraries  (Dia- 
gram AO. 


9 


t 


‘ 


LIBRARY 

OF  THE 

UNIVERSITY  of  ILLINOIS. 

RARY  OF  CONGRESS 


NOTES  FOR  THE  LOUISIANA  PURCHASE  EXPOSITION 
ST.  LOUIS,  MO.,  1904 

No.  3 


THE  EXHIBIT 

OF  THE 

CATALOG  DIVISION 

INCLUDING 

Some  Account  of  the  Catalogs,  Classification, 
and  Card  Distribution  Work  of  the 
Library  of  Congress 

f 


WASHINGTON 

GOVERNMENT  PRINTING  OFFICE 


UNIVERSITY  OF  ILLINOIS 
LIBRARY 

BOOK.  CLASS  VOLUME 

O'LxX'-i  V\  V."b 


U.  ^ $ “t  VN» 


i. 

THE  EXHIBIT. 


1.  The  Old  Catalogs. 

The  exhibit  includes : 

(а)  All  of  the  author  and  classed  catalogs  issued  between  1802 
and  1864  which  at  the  time  of  publication  covered  the  entire 
collection  of  books;  the  subject  catalog  of  1869;  the  single  chap- 
ter published  toward  a catalog  in  1854;  the  two  volumes  of  the 
unfi^hed  author  catalog  of  1878-1880;  the  supplement  for 
1827;  and  the  accession  lists  issued  between  1867  and  1876.  The 
catalogs  issued  between  1802  and  1812,  and  the  portion  of  a 
catalog  issued  in  1854  are  rare.  They  are  exhibited  under  glass 
in  the  upper  part  of  the  case  devoted  to  the  old  catalogs. 

The  supplement  of  1827  is  a fair  sample  of  the  many  supplements 
issued  between  1803  and  1860.  The  accession  lists  of  1867-1876, 
with  the  catalog  of  1864,  furnished  the  hulk  of  the  material  for 
the  cataloging  done  by  means  of  pasted  slips  between  1865  and 
1900.  The  chapter  of  the  1854  catalog  is  of  special  interest, 
because  it  was  printed  from  stereotyped  blocks  prepared  in  accord- 
ance with  Professor  Jewett’s  plan  for  the  systematization  of 
cataloging. 

(б)  The  pasted  slip  catalog,  which  attempted  to  combine  into 
one  alphabetical  arrangement  in  book  form  the  titles  of  the  author 
catalog  of  1864  and  the  supplements  printed  between  1865  and 

187a  .13694 

' 3 


(c)  Cards  from  the  old  official  catalog,  the  first  author  catalog 
on  cards.  This  catalog  is  still  in  use,  hut  is  rapidly  being  super- 
seded by  the  new  dictionary  catalog.  No  additions  have  been 
made  to  it  since  January,  1900. 

2.  Card  Shelf  Lists. 

The  exhibit  includes  the  shelf  list  for  American  history  as  used 
at  the  Library  of  Congress,  and  a duplicate  of  the  shelf  list  for 
bibliography,  so  far  as  it  is  composed  of  printed  cards.  It  should 
be  noticed  that  neither  of  these  shelf  lists  cover  the  complete  col- 
lection in  these  classes.  Several  hundred  volumes  of  rare  Ameri- 
cana, as  well  as  several  hundred  books  on  South  and  Central 
America  not  yet  cataloged,  are  not  represented  in  the  shelf  list 
for  American  history.  Printed  cards  have  not  been  issued  for  a 
large  portion  of  the  collection  on  bibliography.  This  uncata- 
loged portion,  made  up  largely  of  incomplete  serials  and  less 
important  publications,  is  represented  in  the  official  shelf  list  by 
ms.  or  typewritten  cards.  The  ms.  cards  included  in  the  shelf  list 
for  American  history  represent  serial,  incomplete,  and  ephemeral 
publications. 

Some  samples  from  the  shelf  list  on  sheets  used  at  the  Library  of 
Congress  are  placed  in  covers  at  the  right  side  of  the  case  contain- 
ing the  card  shelf  list. 

3.  Author  Catalog  of  the  L.  C.  Printed  Cards. 

This  catalog  includes  one  copy  of  each  printed  card  in  stock 
in  the  Card  Section.  It  will  be  kept  to  date  during  the  exhibition 
by  the  insertion  of  semi  weekly  installments  of  cards  received  from 
the  Library  of  Congress.  It  is  the  same  in  scope  as  the  deposi- 
tory catalogs  of  L.  C.  printed  cards,  and  also  duplicates  the  printed 
cards  in  the  author  catalog  of  the  Card  Section.  The  catalog  con- 
tained on  May  1,  1904,  about  130,000  cards.  The  variation  in  the 
form  of  the  cards  seen  in  the  catalog  are  explained  on  pages  15-18. 


4 


4.  Cards  for  Books  Listed  in  the  A.  L.  A.  Catalog. 

The  cards  in  this  case  are  all  for  books  listed  in  the  1904  edition 
of  the  A.  L.  A.  Catalog.  They  are  shown  in  four  different  arrange- 
ments, viz:  (a)  author  catalog,  first  tier  of  trays;  (b)  classed 
catalog,  “decimal”  system,  second  tier;  (c)  classed  catalog, 
“expansive”  system,  third  tier;  (d)  dictionary  catalog,  fourth- 
sixth  tier.  The  cards  for  books  listed  in  the  A.  L.  A.  Catalog  of 
1904  were  all  issued  in  1904,  and  are  uniform  in  form  of  entry 
and  typography. 

5.  Section  of  Dictionary  Catalog. 

The  cards  included  in  this  catalog  between  Burns  and  California 
constitute  a reproduction  of  a continuous  section  of  the  Third 
Official  Catalog  at  the  Library  of  Congress.  The  detached  groups 
on  bibliography  and  Columbus  have  been  added  as  representing 
important  topics,  each  requiring  a somewThat  different  method 
of  arrangement.  Inasmuch  as  the  printed  cards  in  the  Third 
Official  Catalog  are  identical  with  those  in  the  Public  Catalog  of 
the  Library  of  Congress,  the  cards  exhibited  give  a correct  idea 
of  the  use  of  the  cards  in  the  Public  Catalog  of  the  Library  itself. 

6.  Sections  from  the  Catalog  and  Stock  of  the  Card 
Section. 

The  exhibit  includes: 

(a)  Section  of  the  author  catalog,  showdng  method  of  holding 
orders  for  cards  for  books  not  yet  received  or  in  process  of  cata- 
loging. 

( b ) Section  of  the  classed  catalog  used  in  filling  orders  by 
subject. 

(c)  Section  of  the  series  catalog,  showing  method  of  holding 
orders  for  cards  by  series. 

(d)  Steel  case  similar  in  construction  to  those  used  for  storing 
the  stock  of  cards  at  the  Library  of  Congress.  This  case  has  about 
one-sixth  of  the  capacity  of  those  in  use  in  the  Card  Section.  The 


5 


ten  upper  trays  are  filled  with  cards  from  the  stock  in  the  Card 
Section  and  show  the  guides  in  place.  Method  of  holding  orders 
in  the  stock  for  cards  temporarily  out  of  print  is  shown  in  the 
upper  left  tray. 

7.  Traveling  Catalogs. 

The  canvas-covered  cases  contain  the  traveling  catalogs  on  the 
civil  war  and  bibliography.  In  the  upper  left-hand  tray  of  the 
steel  cases  is  exhibited  a single  tray  of  cards  duplicating  a tray 
in  the  traveling  catalog  on  American  history.  Canvas-covered 
cases  are  used  for  catalogs  containing  less  than  8,000  cards;  steel 
cases  of  the  size  here  shown  are  used  for  those  containing  more 
than  8,000  cards.  Photographs  of  the  traveling  catalogs  are 
exhibited  on  the  wall  at  the  right. 

8.  Photographs. 

These  have  been  selected  to  illustrate  the  work  of  the  Catalog 
Division  and  processes  and  appliances  in  the  production,  storing, 
and  distribution  of  printed  catalog  cards.  They  are  arranged  on 
on  the  wall  above  the  cases. 

9.  Samples  and  Printed  Information. 

The  material  placed  on  the  stand  is  for  free  distribution.  It 
includes: 

(а)  Copies  of  the  “Notes,  No.  3,  Exhibit  of  the  Catalog  Divi- 
sion.’ ’ 

(б)  Copies  of  “Simplified  directions  for  ordering  and  using  the 
L.  C.  cards,”  being  a restatement  in  Bulletin  No.  7,  of  such  por 
tions  of  the  Handbook  of  Card  Distribution  and  of  Bulletins 
Nos.  1-6  as  are  concerned  with  orders  by  author  and  title,  and 
orders  for  cards  corresponding  to  titles  in  the  1904  edition  of  the 
A.  L.  A.  Catalog. 

(c)  Samples  of  proof  sheets  on  white  and  manila  paper. 

(d)  Samples  of  L.  C.  printed  cards,  three  forms. 


6 


The  essential  difference  between  the  three  forms  consists  in  the 
greater  or  less  number  of  items  of  information  given  on  them  for 
the  guidance  of  the  cataloger  in  fitting  them  to  the  catalog  for 
wThich  they  have  been  ordered.  The  cards  having  the  “decimal” 
and  “expansive”  class  marks  on  them,  at  the  extreme  lower  left 
and  right  corners,  respectively,  contain  the  most  cataloger’ s helps. 
They  are  samples  of  the  special  edition  of  cards  printed  for  the 
8,000  volumes  listed  in  the  1904  edition  of  the  A.  L.  A.  Catalog. 
The  cards  with  suggested  subject  entries  but  without  class  marks 
at  lower  left  and  right  corners  are  samples  of  the  cards  regularly 
issued  for  books  in  the  reclassified  sections  of  the  Library  of  Con- 
gress. The  cards  having  no  cataloger’ s helps  on  them  are  samples 
of  the  cards  regularly  issued  for  fiction  and  other  form-classes 
and  for  books  in  sections  of  the  Library  of  Congress  which  have 
not  been  reclassified. 

Franked  envelopes  for  mailing  sets  of  printed  information  and 
samples  can  be  obtained  of  the  attendant  in  charge  of  the  exhibit. 

ATTENDANT  IN  CHARGE  OF  THE  EXHIBIT. 

An  assistant  from  the  Card  Section  of  the  Catalog  Division 
will  have  charge  of  the  exhibit  of  printed  cards  after  June  1,  and 
will  be  present  between  the  hours  of  9 a.  m.  and  4.30  p.  m.  This 
assistant  will  be  prepared  to  explain  and  illustrate  processes  of 
ordering  printed  cards  and  fitting  them  to  catalogs.  Library 
workers  should  feel  free  to  ask  as  many  questions  as  they  desire 
concerning  any  matter  connected  with  the  exhibit  or  suggested  by 
it.  Those  now  using  the  cards  are  invited  to  discuss  with  the 
attendant  any  difficulties  which  may  have  been  experienced. 


II. 


THE  OLD  CATALOGS. 

Until  1864  the  catalogs  of  the  Library  of  Congress,  like  those 
of  other  American  and  European  libraries  of  the  period,  were  in 
book  form.  Catalogs  covering  the  collection  were  printed  at 
intervals  of  about  ten  years  on  the  average.  Between  the  printing 
of  one  catalog  and  the  printing  of  another  several  supplements  or 
lists  of  accessions  were  issued. 

In  the  printed  catalogs  of  1802,  1804,  and  1808  the  books  were 
divided  into  classes  according  to  size,  and  those  of  each  class  were 
numbered  in  the  order  of  the  accession  of  books  of  that  size. 
This  arrangement  corresponded  to  that  of  the  books  on  the  shelves. 
The  entries  were  shortened  to  an  average  of  about  a half  dozen 
words. 

In  the  catalog  of  1812  the  entries  were  divided  into  eighteen 
classes.  Under  each  class  they  were  subdivided  by  size  and  then 
alphabetized  by  the  surnames  of  authors,  or  by  the  first  word  in 
the  case  of  title  entries.  In  this  and  the  earlier  catalogs  author’s 
surnames  only  were  given  and  articles  were  not  disregarded  in  the 
entry  or  arrangement  of  titles. 

The  catalog  of  1815  is  the  most  notable  of  the  collection.  It 
was  in  effect  a catalog  of  the  library  of  Thomas  Jefferson  which 
had  been  bought  in  1814  to  replace  the  one  burned  by  the  British. 
It  was  compiled  by  Jefferson  himself.  In  it  the  entries  were 
divided  according  to  Bacon’s  scheme  for  the  classification  of 
knowledge,  into  forty-four  classes  or  chapters.  Under  the  class 
the  books  were  arranged  alphabetically  and  an  alphabetical 
index  of  authors’  names  for  the  whole  catalog  provided. 

Jefferson’s  classification,  with  some  modification  and  an  increas- 
ing number  of  subdivisions,  was  retained  in  the  catalog  of  1830, 
1839,  1849,  and  1861.  The  catalog  of  1830  had  no  author  index, 


8 


but  it  was  reprinted  in  1831  with  a supplement  and  an  author 
index  to  the  whole.  An  author  index  was  provided  in  the  cata- 
log of  1839,  but  not  in  those^of  1849  and  1861.  By  1861  the 
number  of  classes  and  subclasses  had  increased  so  that  the  entries 
in  the  catalog  of  that  date  were  distributed  in  179  alphabets. 

The  single  chapter  of  a catalog  covering  Ancient  History,  printed 
in  1854,  is  notable  as  being  the  result  of  an  experiment  conducted 
by  the  Smithsonian  Institution  and  the  Library  of  Congress  in 
preparing  a catalog  from  stereotyped  blocks,  according  to  the 
plan  of  Prof.  Charles  C.  Jewett.  The  ultimate  aim  of  the  plan  was 
to  inaugurate  a system  of  cooperative  cataloging  between  the 
Library  of  Congress  and  other  American  libraries.  An  edition  of 
this  chapter  of  the  catalog  was  also  printed  in  folio  form. 

The  catalog  of  1864  was  the  last  complete  author  catalog  issued. 
In  it  the  classed  arrangement  was  abandoned,  and  the  entries 
arranged  in  one  alphabet. 

In  1878-1880  an  attempt  was  made  to  issue  another  printed  book 
catalog  covering  the  collection.  Two  volumes,  including  titles 
alphabetized  between  A and  Craigin,  were  printed.  The  work  of 
preparing  the  manuscript  proceeded  slowly  on  account  of  the  care 
exercised  in  the  work  and  the  small  force  available  for  it.  The 
titles  were  usually  given  in  full,  and  the  expense  of  issuing  the 
volume  was  large.  The  result  was  that  the  appropriation  for 
printing  the  catalog  was  found  to  be  totally  inadequate.  Accord- 
ingly the  work  was  abandoned.  In  order  to  facilitate  the  rapid 
consultation  of  entries  in  these  volumes  they  were  pasted  into  a 
single  scrapbook.  This  book  included  the  entries  between  A and 
Drei,  inasmuch  as  a portion  of  the  sheets  for  the  third  volume  of 
the  catalog  were  then  available  in  unbound  form. 

After  the  catalog  of  1864  had  been  issued  the  attempt  was  made 
to  maintain  a catalog  in  a single  volume  by  the  ‘ 1 scrapbook  ’ ’ 
method.  The  titles  in  the  1864  catalog  were  distributed  through 
a large  manila  scrapbook  at  such  intervals  as  were  deemed  proper 
to  admit  of  the  insertion  of  future  accessions  in  their  alphabetical 
place.  Titles  clipped  from  the  annual  lists  of  accessions  issued 


9 


between  1864  and  1876  were  pasted  in  the  space  left  for  accessions. 
The  space  allowed,  while  ample  at  some  points,  proved  to  be 
very  inadequate  at  others,  with  the  result  that  printed  slips  had 
sometimes  to  be  tipped  in  a half  dozen  deep.  Although  much 
ingenuity  was  shown  in  maintaining  an  approximately  alphabetical 
arrangement  of  titles,  within  twelve  years  the  pasted-slip  catalog 
had  become  so  congested  that  the  addition  of  further  titles  was 
judged  impracticable.  It  was  until  very  recently  consulted  occa- 
sionally and  referred  to  as  a check  on  cards  missing  from  the  official 
card  catalog  of  the  Library. 

Concurrently  with  the  formation  of  the  pasted-slip  book  catalog 
the  Old  Official  Catalog  of  the  Library  was  in  course  of  compila- 
tion. This  was  compiled  for  the  most  part  by  pasting  on  cards, 
4j  by  7 inches,  entries  clipped  from  the  catalog  of  1864,  from  the 
subsequent  annual  lists  of  accessions,  and  later  from  the  Catalog 
of  Copyright  Entries.  The  titles  of  accessions  not  available  in 
printed  form  were  written  in  the  usual  way.  A considerable  por- 
tion of  the  entries  in  this  catalog  are  full  and  accurate,  with  the 
result  that  the  cards  are  often  used  as  copy  for  the  printed  cards. 
The  Old  Official  Catalog  was  kept  up  until  the  end  of  1899.  (For 
further  information  as  to  the  old  catalogs  see  Johnston,  W.  D., 
History  of  the  Library  of  Congress,  1800-1860.) 


III. 

THE  NEW  CARD  CATALOG. 

Beginning  with  July,  1898,  fifty  copies  of  the  entry  for  each 
book  received  by  copyright  were  printed.  With  these  cards  the 
compilation  was  begun  of  three  dictionary  catalogs,  viz,  the  Pub- 
lic Catalog,  the  New  Official  Catalog,  or  Second  Official  Catalog, 
intended  for  the  use  of  the  Catalog  Division,  and  the  Third  Official 
Catalog,  designed  to  be  placed  eventually  at  the  Capitol.  The 
accessions  of  the  Library  received  by  purchase  and  gift  continued 


10 


to  be  cataloged  on  the  large  cards  and  filed  in  the  Old  Official 
Catalog  until  the  end  of  1899.  During  1900  ms.  author  cards  for 
these  were  made  for  the  Second  Official  Catalog  and  typewritten 
copies  of  the  same  for  the  Public  Catalog. 

In  the  first  part  of'  1900  the  entries  in  the  catalog  of  1864  and 
the  twelve  supplements  issued  between  1864  and  1876,  about 
160,000  titles,  were  mounted  on  cards  and  filed  in  the  Public  Cata- 
log. Since  January,  1901,  at  which  date  the  Library  began  to 
print  cards  for  all  books  cataloged  or  recataloged,  practically  the 
same  entries  are  inserted  in  the  three  catalogs. 

Some  of  the  entries  required  for  a complete  dictionary  catalog 
are  not  at  present  inserted  in  the  three  catalogs.  Full  subject 
entries  are  usually  made  only  for  books  classified  according  to  the 
new  scheme  and  for  books  in  biography. 

The  difference  in  the  scope  of  the  three  catalogs  may  be  indi- 
cated as  follows: 

Excepting  typewritten  cross  reference  cards,  the  Third  Official 
Catalog  contains  nothing  but  printed  cards.  It  is  the  same  in 
■scope  as  the  stock  of  printed  cards  and  covers  the  following: 

(a)  Books  received  by  copyright  since  August,  1898. 

( b ) Books  received  by  purchase  or  gift  since  January  1,  1901. 

(c)  Books  in  recataloged  sections,  viz:  General  history;  Ameri- 
can history  and  description;  British  history  and  description  (i.  e., 
hist,  and  desc.  of  England,  Scotland,  Ireland,  and  Wales);  gen- 
eral history  and  description  of  Europe;  history  and  description  of 
Austria-Hungary;  bibliography;  mathematics. 

The  Second  Official  Catalog  contains,  in  addition  to  the  entries 
in  the  Third  Official  Catalog,  ms.  author  cards  for  books  received 
by  purchase  or  gift  in  1900.  On  the  other  hand,  it  is  less  complete 
than  the  Third  Official  Catalog  in  the  matter  of  title  entries.  It 
contains  title  entries  for  anonymous  books  only,  whereas  the 
Third  Official  Catalog,  like  the  Public  Catalog,  contains  title 
entries  for  striking  or  memorable  titles  in  addition  to  those  for 
anonymous  books. 

The  Public  Catalog  contains  the  following  entries  not  repre- 


11 


sented  in  either  the  Second  Official  Catalog  or  the  Third  Official 
Catalog: 

(a)  Main  entry  cards  for  serial,  incomplete,  and  ephemeral 
publications. 

(b)  Pasted  slip  entries  for  books  listed  in  the  catalog  of  1864 
and  the  accession  lists  of  1865-1876,  which  have  not  yet  been 
recataloged. 

The  second  official  catalog  differs  from  the  other  two  as 
follows: 

(а)  It  contains  the  original  manuscript  cards,  which  have  served 
as  copy  for  the  printer,  these  being  retained  in  preference  to 
printed  copies  in  order  to  preserve  the  original  record  of  each 
entry.  When  large  cards  from  the  old  official  catalog  are  used 
as  copy  for  the  printer,  a printed  copy  is  necessarily  used  in  the 
second  official  catalog,  the  various  checks  and  other  records  not 
printed  being  transferred  in  manuscript. 

(б)  All  tracing  of  cards  for  the  three  catalogs  is  done  on  the 
cards  in  the  second  official  catalog. 


IV. 

THE  CLASSIFICATION. 

During  the  first  decade  of  the  existence  of  the  Library  of  Con- 
gress the  books  were  classified  by  size  into  folios,  octavos,  and 
duodecimos.  In  the  catalog  of  1812  the  books  were  divided  by 
subjects  into  eighteen  chapters,  with  subdivisions  of  the  chapters 
by  size  of  volumes. 

When,  in  1815,  Jefferson’s  library  became  the  Library  of  Con- 
gress, the  classification  used  by  Jefferson  was  adopted.  This  was 
an  adaptation  by  Jefferson  himself  of  Bacon’s  well-known  scheme 
for  the  classification  of  knowledge,  resulting  in  the  division  of  the 
library  into  forty-four  chapters.  The  classification  thus  inaugu- 
rated was  retained  with  some  changes  and  an  increasing  number 


12 


of  subdivisions  down  to  1898,  when  a new  classification  began 
to  be  applied.  (For  additional  information  on  the  old  system  of 
classification,  see  Johnston,  W.  D.,  History  of  the  Library  of 
Congress,  1800-1864.) 

The  new  system  of  classification  is  devised  from  a comparison 
of  existing  schemes  (including  the  “decimal”  and  the  “expan- 
sive”) and  a consideration  of  the  particular  conditions  in  this 
library,  the  character  of  its  present  and  probable  collections,  and 
its  probable  use.  It  is  assumed  that  the  departments  of  history, 
political  and  social  science,  and  certain  others  will  be  unusually 
large.  It  is  assumed  that  investigators  will  be  freely  admitted  to 
the  shelves. 

The  system  devised  has  not  sought  to  follow  strictly  the  scien- 
tific order  of  subjects.  It  has  sought  rather  convenient  sequence 
of  the  various  groups,  considering  them  as  groups  of  books,  not 
as  groups  of  mere  subjects.  It  has  sought  to  avoid  technical, 
foreign,  or  unusual  terms  in  the  designation  of  these  groups.  It 
has  selected  for  the  symbols  to  denote  them:  (1)  for  the  classes, 
a capital  letter  or  a double  letter;  (2)  for  the  subclasses,  these 
letters  combined  with  a numeral  in  ordinary  sequence.  Provision 
for  the  insertion  of  future  groups  is:  (1)  in  intervening  numbers 
as  yet  unused;  (2)  in  the  use  of  decimals. 

The  main  classes  are  as  follows: 

A.  General  works.  Polygraphy. 

B.  Philosophy.  Religion. 

C.  History,  auxiliary  sciences. 

D.  History  and  topography  (except  America). 

E.  America  (general)  and  United  States  (general). 

F.  United  States  (local)  and  America  outside  of  United 

States. 

G.  Geography.  Anthropology. 

H.  Statistics.  Economics.  Sociology. 

J.  Political  science. 

K.  La,w. 

L.  Education. 


13 


M.  Music. 

N.  Fine  arts. 

P.  Literature  and  language. 

Q.  Science. 

R.  Medicine. 

S.  Agriculture,  plant  and  animal  industry. 

T.  Technology. 

U.  Military  science. 

V.  Naval  science. 

Z.  Bibliography. 

On  June  1, 1904,  the  classification  of  D,  E,  F,  M,  Q,  R,  S,  T,  U,  Z, 
had  been  completed;  classes  A,  C,  G,  H,  V,  were  in  process  of 
reclassification. 


V. 

SHELF  LISTS. 

The  shelf  lists  are  written  on  sheets  32  X 25  cm.  The  entries 
are  made  in  strict  order,  alphabetical  or  chronological,  as  the  case 
may  be,  with  liberal  provisions  of  space  between  them  at  the 
start  for  additions,  varying  according  to  subject.  Up  to  50 
entries  of  single  works  may  be  made  on  a page,  while  a single 
serial  entry  may  fill  a whole  page.  Additions  may  also  be  entered 
for  a time  on  the  verso  of  the  preceding  sheet  opposite  the  regular 
place.  When  that  space  is  exhausted  the  entries  are  copied,  being 
transferred  to  several  new  sheets  with  fresh  provision  of  room  for 
new  entries.  The  sheets  are  kept  loose  in  covers,  forming  port- 
folios of  convenient  size  for  handling;  these  covers  are  preferred 
to  temporary  binders,  because  sheets  may  be  withdrawn  or 
replaced  without  any  delay,  saving  much  time  when  additions  are 
made  frequently. 

After  catalog  cards  have  been  printed  for  a classified  section  of 
the  library,  a printed  card  shelf  list  or  classified  catalog  is  formed 
for  reference  use  by  filing  these  cards  in  systematic  order. 


14 


VI. 


THE  L.  C.  PRINTED  CARDS. 

The  following  are  some  of  the  general  characteristics  of  the 
cards : 

1.  One  form  of  card  only  is  printed  for  a book,  viz,  the  main- 
entry  card.  All  the  cards  needed  for  secondary  entries  are  to  be 
made  from  this  main- entry  card  by  the  addition  of  headings. 

2.  So  far  as  practicable,  the  real  name  of  the  author  is  given  in 
full,  with  dates  of  birth  and  death. 

3.  The  title  of  the  book  is  usually  given  in  full. 

4.  The  paging  of  the  book  and  its  bibliographical  peculiarities 
are  carefully  indicated. 

5.  Contents  are  usually  reproduced  when  they  contain  several 
works  by  the  same  author,  or  works  by  several  authors,  or  works 
•on  several  subjects,  especially  if  the  collective  title  does  not  suf- 
ficiently describe  them. 

6.  Notes  are  given  when  necessary  to  explain  the  title  or  to  cor- 
rect any  misapprehension  to  wThich  it  might  lead,  or  to  supply 
essential  information  or  bibliographical  details  not  stated  in  the 
title,  imprint,  or  collation. 

As  will  be  seen  from  examination  of  any  file  of  the  L.  C.  cards, 
numerous  changes  have  been  made  in  the  form  of  these  cards  in 
the  five  years  during  which  they  have  been  issued.  Changes  and 
additions  have  been  made  whenever  it  was  thought  that  they 
would  render  the  cards  more  effective.  The  following  are  the 
principal  changes  and  additions  made  to  date: 

(a)  author’s  name  in  the  heading. 

Type  changed  from  roman,  spaced,  to  black  face  in  May,  1901; 
increasing  effort  made  to  secure  full  names  and  dates  of  authors. 


15 


(b)  author’s  name  in  the  title. 

After  July,  1901,  the  author’s  name  was  repeated  in  the  title, 
pursuant  to  a decision  of  the  A.  L.  A.  Committee  on  cataloging. 

(c)  COPYRIGHT  NOTE. 

In  December,  1901,  at  the  request  of  libraries  subscribing  to 
printed  cards,  the  two-line  note  containing  information  as  to  copy- 
right was  shortened  to  the  single  word  “copyright”  and  placed 
at  the  bottom  of  the  card. 

(d)  SUBJECT  HEADINGS  FOR  DICTIONARY  CATALOGS. 

Previous  to  September,  1901,  no  subject  entries  were  suggested. 
From  September,  1901,  to  August,  1902,  subject  headings  were 
suggested  on  cards  for  copyrighted  books  and  for  books  in  reclassi- 
fied sections  of  the  Library.  Since  August,  1902,  subject  head- 
ings have  been  suggested  on  cards  for  books  in  reclassified  sections 
only,  with  an  exception  in  the  case  of  cards  issued  for  books  in 
the  new  edition  of  the  A.  L.  A.  Catalog.  Subject  headings  are 
indicated  on  all  the  cards  for  books  listed  in  this  catalog.  Of 
the  130,000  cards  in  stock  about  50,000  have  subject  headings  in- 
dicated on  them;  about  30,000  are  for  books  in  fiction  and  other 
form  classes  which  require  no  subject  headings;  the  remaining 
50,000  cards  have  no  subject  headings  indicated  on  them,  because 
they  represent  books  which  at  the  time  of  the  printing  of  the  en- 
try were  still  classified  according  to  the  old  system. 

(e)  ADDED  ENTRIES. 

Since  March,  1904,  the  necessary  added  entries  have  been  indi- 
cated on  all  cards,  names  of  joint  authors,  editors,  etc.,  being 
given  in  full  when  practicable.  To  distinguish  added  entries 
from  subject  entries  they  are  given  in  a second  series,  and  num- 
bered with  roman  numerals. 


16 


(f)  NUMBER  OF  CARDS  WANTED. 

To  facilitate  the  ordering  of  cards  for  books  listed  in  the  new 
edition  of  the  A.  L.  A.  Catalog,  the  number  of  cards  needed  for 
cataloging  the  book  in  a dictionary  catalog  of  medium  fulness  is 
indicated  after  the  serial  number. 

(g)  TABLE  OF  CONTENTS. 

To  save  space  on  the  card  it  was  decided,  March,  1901,  to  give 
table  of  contents  in  one  paragraph  and  usually  in  their  natural 
order  instead  of  rearranging  them.  At  the  request  of  libraries  sub- 
scribing to  cards,  black-faced  figures  have  been  used  since  March, 
1903,  for  volume  numbers  in  table  of  contents. 

(h)  CLASS  MARKS. 

The  class  marks  of  the  Library  of  Congress  have  been  given 
uniformly  on  cards  for  books  in  the  reclassified  sections  of  the 
Library  but  on  no  others.  The  class  marks  for  the  “ expansive” 
and  “ decimal  ” systems  have  been  given  on  cards  for  books  in  the 
new  edition  of  the  A.  L.  A.  Catalog. 

(i)  SERIAL  NUMBER. 

Most  of  the  cards  printed  for  copyrighted  books  during  the  years 
1898-1901  were  dated  and  numbered  to  correspond  to  the  order  of 
their  entry  in  a certain  number  of  the  Catalogue  of  copyright  en- 
tries. In  December,  1900,  and  the  early  part  of  1901,  various 
short  series  were  started  by  way  of  experiment.  After  July,  1901, 
all  these  different  series  of  numbering  were  abandoned  and  all 
cards  printed  were  numbered  consecutively  in  a single  series 
throughout  the  year,  the  series  for  each  year  being  designated  by 
the  final  figures  in  the  date.  For  example,  the  four-hundredth 
card  printed  in  1902  is  numbered  2-400. 


As  the  earlier  cards  are  reprinted  they  are  changed  to  the  later 
form,  so  far  as  practicable.  Consequently  the  stock  of  cards  tends 
to  become  more  uniform.  While  variations  in  the  form  of  the 

17 

31528 — 04 2 


card  are  admitted  to  be  objectionable,  experience  seems  to  snow 
that  they  do  not  essentially  impair  the  effectiveness  of  a catalog 
made  up  from  the  L.  C.  printed  cards.  Such  a catalog  is  believed 
to  be  far  more  satisfactory  to  the  users  of  it  than  any  catalog  made 
from  handwritten  or  typewritten  cards. 

The  scope  of  the  present  stock  of  printed  cards  is  as  follows: 

(1)  All  copyrighted  books  received  since  July  1,  1898. 

(2)  All  books  received  by  gift  or  purchase  since  January,  1901. 

(3)  Books  in  the  recataloged  sections  of  the  library,  viz:  Gen- 
eral history;  American  history  and  description;  British  history 
and  description  (i.  e.,  history  and  description  of  England,  Scot- 
land, Ireland,  and  Wales);  general  history  and  description  of 
Europe;  history  and  description  of  Austria-Hungary;  biblio- 
graphy; mathematics. 


VII. 

CARD  DISTRIBUTION  WORK. 

When  the  Library  of  Congress  began  to  print  cards  in  July,  1898, 
extra  copies  were  printed  with  a view  to  future  distribution  of 
these  to  other  libraries.  In  December,  1900,  a branch  of  the  Gov- 
ernment Printing  Office  was  installed  in  the  Library,  and  in  Jan- 
uary, 1901,  cards  began  to  be  printed  for  all  the  current  accessions 
to  the  Library  and  for  all  books  reached  in  the  process  of  recata- 
loging the  Library. 

In  the  latter  part  of  October,  1901,  a circular  was  sent  out  an- 
nouncing that:  (1)  The  Library  of  Congress  would  sell  copies  of 
any  card  which  it  had  printed  or  might  print  in  the  future  to 
libraries  which  cared  to  purchase  them;  (2)  to  promote  the  ad- 
vancement of  bibliography  and  library  economy,  and  to  facilitate 
the  ordering  of  printed  cards  by  number,  copies  of  the  cards 


18 


would  be  deposited  in  twenty-five  of  the  leading  libraries  of 
the  country;  (3)  to  further  facilitate  the  ordering  of  cards  by 
number  proof  sheets  of  cards  in  process  of  printing  would  be  dis- 
tributed to  leading  libraries,  library  commissions,  and  departments 
of  the  United  States  Government. 

At  the  beginning  of  the  work  orders  for  cards  were  restricted 
to  libraries.  At  present  no  restriction  whatever  is  made,  except 
that,  in  addition  to  the  cost  of  the  cards  themselves,  a fair  price 
will  be  charged  for  the  time  required  to  select  and  ship  them. 
Cards  may  be  ordered  in  any  way  that  identifies  those  desired 
wTith  reasonable  exactness. 

In  order  that  orders  of  various  kinds  might  be  handled  to  advan- 
tage, special  catalogs  had  to  be  compiled  from  the  printed  cards 
in  stock.  An  author  catalog  was  first  compiled  and  methods 
devised  for  holding  in  it  orders  for  cards  for  books  not  yet  received 
or  in  process  of  recataloging.  Provision  was  next  made  for  orders 
by  subject,  by  rearranging  a set  of  the  cards  in  the  form  of  an 
alphabetico-classed  catalog  made  up  of  broad  classes  from  which 
orders  by  subject  could  be  advantageously  filled.  The  latest  addi- 
tion to  the  working  catalogs  of  the  Card  Section  is  made  up  of  all 
the  cards  containing  a series  note.  By  the  help  of  this  catalog 
orders  for  cards  for  books  and  monographs  in  series  can  be  advan- 
tageously filled. 

To  facilitate  the  recataloging  of  libraries  with  the  printed  cards, 
traveling  catalogs  have  been  compiled  of  cards  covering  sections 
of  the  Library  of  Congress  which  have  been  recataloged,  also  a 
traveling  catalog  of  the  whole  collection  of  cards,  and  others  for 
certain  topics  not  yet  recataloged.  These  catalogs  are  sent  to 
libraries  by  freight,  express,  or  mail,  according  to  the  size  of  the 
catalog.  They  enable  libraries  using  them  to  find  out  in  advance 
whether  cards  are  in  stock  for  certain  books  and,  if  so,  to  order 
copies  by  the  serial  number  of  the  card  instead  of  being  obliged  to 
write  out  author,  title,  and  imprint  facts  for  the  book. 

The  orders  now  currently  received  for  cards  may  be  divided 
into  five  classes  according  to  the  method  of  ordering: 


19 


(1)  ORDERS  BY  AUTHOR  AND  TITLE. 


Author,  title,  and  imprint  facts  necessary  to  the  identification 
of  the  book  are  copied  from  the  title  page  of  the  book  or  from 
some  list  and  submitted  as  an  order  for  cards.  About  three-fifths 
of  the  cards  sold  are  ordered  in  this  way.  The  smaller  public 
libraries  find  this  method  of  ordering  the  most  practical. 

Experience  has  shown  that  such  orders  can  be  made  out  rapidly 
and  yet  with  accuracy  sufficient  for  the  purpose  intended. 

(2)  ORDERS  BY  SERIAL  NUMBER. 

As  each  card  contains  a serial  number,  cards  can  be  ordered  by 
number  whenever  it  is  possible  to  obtain  access  to  a copy  of  the 
card  or  to  the  proof  sheets  of  cards  in  process  of  printing.  The 
L.  C.  serial  numbers  can  now  be  obtained  from  the  following 
sources:  (a)  Depository  catalogs,  (seep.  23);  (b)  proof  sheets  of 
catalog  cards  in  process  of  printing;  (c)  traveling  catalogs;  (d) 
bibliographical  publications  which  have  the  L.  C.  card  numbers 
attached.  The  following  give  L.  C.  numbers  so  far  as  practicable: 
Catalog  of  the  A.  L.  A.  Library,  1904;  “Best  books  of  the  year,” 
issued  by  the  New  York  State  Library;  “Buying  list,”  issued  by 
the  Wisconsin  Library  Commission;  “Accessions  to  the  Depart- 
ment Library”  of  the  U.  S.  Department  of  Agriculture;”  “Writ- 
ings in  American  history,”  compiled  by  E.  C.  Richardson; 
“ Cumulative  Book  Index,”  published  by  H.  W.  Wilson,  Minne- 
apolis; “Catalogue  of  copyright  entries,”  issued  by  the  Copyright 
Office. 

3.  ORDERS  BY  SUBJECT. 


This  method  of  ordering  is  used  chiefly  by  specialists,  com- 
mercial firms,  bibliographers,  and  libraries  having  special  collec- 
tions. 

4.  ORDERS  BY  SERIES. 

Cards  may  be  ordered  for  any  series  or  portion  of  a series  of 
publications  which  is  within  the  scope  of  the  stock,  and  cards  will 
be  sent  for  current  issues  in  the  series,  if  desired. 


20 


5.  BY  SUBSCRIPTION. 


\ 


For  the  benefit  of  libraries  which  desire  to  obtain  from  the  cards 
suggestions  as  to  books  to  be  purchased,  or  to  use  them  for  biblio- 
graphical purposes,  as  well  as  a means  of  ordering  additional  cards 
by  number,  certain  selections  of  cards  are  sold  on  subscription, 
e.  g.  “cards  for  new  books,”  “cards  for  the  more  important  new 
books,” -etc.  Subscription  to  cards  on  any  subject  is  also  pro- 
vided for. 


The  percentage  of  cards  which  will  ordinarily  be  obtained  from 
orders  by  author  and  title  depends  on  the  character  of  the  library. 
In  the  case  of  orders  from  small  public  libraries  the  average  is 
about  90  per  cent.  The  percentage  is  less  for  larger  libraries 
which  buy  a considerable  percentage  of  foreign  books.  It  is  still 
smaller  for  college  libraries  and  is  smallest  of  all  for  university 
libraries  which  buy  a large  percentage  of  foreign  books  in  highly 
specialized  lines. 

The  cards  can  be  used  to  special  advantage  by  libraries  just  start- 
ing and  by  libraries  recataloging,  because  the  cards  needed  by 
them,  which  are  already  in  stock,  can  be  ordered  in  large  install- 
ments and  the  manuscript  cards  made  thereafter  can  be  varied,  if 
desired,  to  correspond  with  the  printed  cards  received  from  the 
Library  of  Congress.  The  experience  of  libraries  now  subscribing 
to  cards  seems  to  prove  that  it  is  advantageous  also  for  libraries  to 
use  the  printed  cards  for  current  accessions  even  when  no  recata- 
loging is  contemplated.  Libraries  have  found  that  the  ordering 
of  printed  cards  and  the  fitting  of  them- to  the  catalog,  although 
somewhat  difficult  at  first,  can  be  reduced  to  a routine  requiring 
much  less  skilled  labor  than  good  manuscript  cataloging. 

The  affixing  of  the  L.  C.  card  numbers  to  titles  in  the  new 
edition  of  the  A.  L.  A.  Catalog,  as  well  as  to  titles  in  other  biblio- 
graphical lists,  such  as  those  named  on  p.  20,  seems  likely  to  con- 
siderably facilitate  the  ordering  of  cards  by  smaller  libraries. 


21 


Up  to  June  27,  1904,  355  libraries  and  28  individuals  and  firms 
had  subscribed  to  the  cards.  The  sale  of  cards  during  April,  1904, 
slightly  exceeded  $1,000.  The  total  sale  of  cards  during  the  thirty 
months  from  the  beginning  of  the  work  in  November,  1901,  to 
the  end  of  April,  1904,  amounted  to  approximately  $15,000. 

Information  as  to  ordering  and  using  the  L.  C.  catalog  cards 
has  been  published  in  the  Handbook  of  Card  Distribution  and 
the  Bulletins  of  the  Card  Section.  “Simplified  directions  for 
ordering  and  using  the  L.  C.  cards,”  especially  suited  to  the  needs 
of  the  smaller  libraries,  will  be  issued  in  August  as  Bulletin  No.  10. 
This  bulletin,  with  sample  cards  and  proof  sheets,  will  be  offered 
for  free  distribution  at  the  exposition.  Bequests  for  additional 
information  will  be  transmitted  to  the  Library  of  Congress  by  the 
attendant  in  charge  of  the  exhibit,  or  may  be  addressed  directly 
to — 

The  Librarian  of  Congress, 

Washington , D.  C. 

(Card  Distribution.) 


For  list  of  subscribers  to  the  cards , including  depository  libraries , see 
pp.  23-34- 


22 


LIST  OF  SUBSCRIBERS  TO  THE  CARDS. 


(Revised  to  June  27,  1904.) 

[List  includes  all  libraries  which  have  subscribed  to  the  cards  at  any  time  and 
all  individuals  (including  employees  of  the  Library  of  Congress)  who  have 
deposited  money  to  the  amount  of  83.00  for  cards.  Depository  libraries  are 
marked  with  an  asterisk  (*).] 

A.  K.  Smiley  Public,  Redlands,  Cal. 

Adriance  Memorial,  Poughkeepsie,  N.  Y. 

Albion  College,  Albion,  Mich. 

Allegheny  Carnegie  Free,  Allegheny,  Pa. 

Alliance  Public,  Alliance,  Ohio. 

American  Bibliographical  Society,  Chicago,  111. 

American  Philosophical  Society,  Philadelphia,  Pa. 

Ames  Free,  North  Easton,  Mass. 

Amesbury  Public,  Amesbury,  Mass. 

Amherst  College,  Amherst,  Mass. 

Ansonia,  Ansonia,  Conn. 

Arizona  University,  Tucson,  Ariz. 

Arkansas  University,  Fayetteville,  Ark. 

Armour  Institute,  Chicago,  111. 

Ashland  Public,  Ashland,  Mass. 

Athol  Public,  Athol,  Mass. 

*Atlanta  Carnegie,  Atlanta,  Ga. 

Bangor  Public,  Baaigor,  Me. 

Bangor  Theological  Seminary,  Bangor,  Me. 

Baraboo  Public,  Baraboo,  Wis. 

Bates  College,  Lewiston,  Me. 

Bay  City  Public,  Bay  City,  Mich. 

Beatrice  Free  Public,  Beatrice,  Nebr. 

Belfast  Free,  Belfast,  Me. 

Bellevue  College,  Bellevue,  Nebr. 


23 


Bellevue  Public,  Bellevue,  Ohio. 

Bennett  Public,  Billerica,  Mass. 

Berlin  Public,  Berlin,  Ontario. 

Beverly  Public,  Beverly,  Mass. 

P.  Blakiston’s  Son  & Co.,  Phila.,  Pa. 

Boston  Athenaeum,  Boston,  Mass. 

Boston  Book  Co.  (Law  Dep’t),  Boston. 

Boston  Book  Co.  (Library  Dep’t),  Boston. 
Bowdoin  College,  Brunswick,  Me. 

Bristol  Public,  Bristol,  Conn. 

Brockton  Public,  Brockton,  Mass. 

Brookline  Public,  Brookline,  Mass. 

*Brooklyn  Public,  Brooklyn,  N.  Y. 

Brower,  H.  M.,  Gloversville,  N.  Y. 

Brown  University,  Providence,  R.  I. 

Bryant,  Sauk  Center,  Minn. 

Bryn  Mawr  College,  Bryn  Mawr,  Pa. 

^Buffalo  Public,  Buffalo,  N.  Y. 

California  State,  Sacramento,  Cal. 

California  University,  Berkeley,  Cal. 

Calumet  & Hecla  Mining  Co.,  Boston,  Mass. 
Cambridge  Public,  Cambridge,  Mass. 
Canajoharie  High  School,  Canajoharie,  N.  Y. 
Canton  Public,  Canton,  Mass. 

Canton  Public,  Canton,  Ohio. 

Carleton  College,  Northfield,  Minn. 

Carthage  Carnegie,  Carthage,  Mo. 

Carver,  T.  N.,  Cambridge,  Mass. 

Cathedral  Library  Association,  New  York  City. 
Cazenovia  Public,  Cazenovia,  N.  Y. 

Cedar  Rapids  Free  Public,  Cedar  Rapids,  Iowa. 
Charleston  Free  Public,  Charleston,  111. 
Cherokee  Public,  Cherokee,  Iowa. 

Chicago  Art  Institute,  Chicago,  111. 

Chicago  Public,  Chicago,  111. 


24 


Chicago  Theological  Seminary,  Chicago,  111. 
Chicago  University  (Hist.  Dep’t),  Chicago,  111. 
Chicago  University  (Law  Dep’t),  Chicago,  111. 

* Cincinnati  Public,  Cincinnati,  Ohio. 

Cincinnati  University,  Cincinnati,  Ohio. 

Clark  University,  Worcester,  Mass. 

* Cleveland  Public,  Cleveland,  Ohio. 

Clinton  Public,  Clinton,  Iowa. 

Colgate  University,  Hamilton,  N.  Y. 

Columbia  University,  New  York  City. 
Columbus  Public  School,  Columbus,  Ohio. 
Concord  Public,  Concord,  N.  H. 

Connecticut  Historical  Soc.,  Hartford,  Conn. 
Connecticut  State,  Hartford,  Conn. 

Cornell  University,  Ithaca,  N.  Y. 

Cortland  State  Normal  School,  Cortland,  N.  Y. 
Council  Bluffs  Public,  Council  Bluffs,  Iowa. 
Covina  Public,  Covina,  Cal. 

Danville  Public,  Danville,  111. 

Darnall,  Id.  J.,  Knoxville,  Tenn. 

Dartmouth  College,  Hanover,  N.  H. 

Davies,  John  F.,  Butte,  Mont. 

Dayton  Public,  Dayton,  Ohio. 

Decatur  Free  Public,  Decatur,  111. 

Delaware  College,  Newark,  Del. 

Delhi  Free  Public,  Delhi,  N.  Y. 

* Denver  Public,  Denver,  Colo. 

Derby  Public,  Derby,  Conn. 

Des  Moines  Public,  Des  Moines,  Iowa. 

Detroit  Public,  Detroit,  Mich. 

De  Witt,  F.  M.,  San  Francisco,  Cal. 

Dover  Public,  Dover,  N.  H. 

Dowagiac  Public,  Dowagiac,  Mich. 

Drake  University,  Des  Moines,  Iowa. 

Drew  Theological  Seminary,  Madison,  N.  J. 


25 


Drexel  Institute,  Philadelphia,  Pa. 

Duluth  Public,  Duluth,  Minn. 

Duquesne  Carnegie,  Duquesne,  Pa. 

East  St.  Louis  Public,  East  St.  Louis,  111. 

Eastern  111.  State  Normal  School,  Charleston,  111. 
Eau  Claire  Public,  Eau  Claire,  Wis. 

El  Paso  Public,  El  Paso,  Tex. 

Englewood,  Englewood,  N.  J. 

Essex  Institute,  Salem,  Mass. 

Evanston  Free  Public,  Evanston,  111. 

Falmouth  Free  Public,  Falmouth,  Mass. 

Farnam,  H.  W.,  New  Haven,  Conn. 

Farnsworth  Public,  Oconto,  Wis. 

Fitchburg  Public,  Fitchburg,  Mass. 

Flagg,  Chas.  A.,  Library  of  Congress. 

Fletcher  Free,  Burlington,  Vt. 

Forbes,  Northampton,  Mass. 

Fort  Worth  Carnegie  Public,  Texas. 

Franklin  Institute,  Philadelphia,  Pa. 

Gardner  A.  Sage,  New  Brunswick,  N.  J. 
Goodrich,  June,  Syracuse,  N.  Y. 

Goshen  Carnegie  Public,  Goshen,  Ind. 

Grand  Rapids  Public,  Grand  Rapids,  Mich. 
Grinnell  Free  Public,  Grinnell,  Iowa. 

Grolier  Club,  New  York  City. 

Haines,  Jane  B.,  Library  of  Congress. 

Hartford  Public,  Hartford,  Conn. 

Harvard  Law  School,  Cambridge,  Mass. 

Harvard  University,  Cambridge,  Mass. 

Haverhill  Public,  Haverhill,  Mass. 

Holyoke  Public,  Holyoke,  Mass. 

Honolulu  Library,  Honolulu,  H. 

Houghton,  Mifflin  & Co.,  Boston,  Mass. 

Howard  University,  Washington,  D.  C. 

Hudson  Public,  Hudson,  Wis. 


26 


Hutcheson,  David,  Library  of  Congress. 

Hyde  Park  Public,  Hyde  Park,  Mass. 

Ida  Public,  Belvidere,  111. 

Illinois  State  Normal  School,  Normal,  111. 

*Illinois  University,  Champaign,  111. 

Indiana  Public  Library  Commission,  Indianapolis,  Ind. 
Indiana  State,  Indianapolis,  Ind. 

Indiana  State  Normal  School,  Terre  Haute,  Ind. 

Iowa  College,  Grinnell,  Iowa. 

Iowa  State,  Des  Moines,  Iowa. 

Iowa  State  College,  Ames,  Iowa. 

Iowa  State  University,  Iowa  City,  Iowa. 

Ireland,  Alleyne,  Boston,  Mass. 

Jackson  Free,  Jackson,  Tenn. 

Jacksonville  Public,  Jacksonville,  111. 

Jacob  Tome  Inst.,  Port  Deposit,  Md. 

Jefferson  Medical  College,  Phi  la.,  Pa. 

*John  Crerar,  Chicago,  111. 

*Johns  Hopkins  University,  Baltimore,  Md. 

Johnson  Public,  Hackensack,  N.  J. 

Johnston,  R.  H.,  Library  of  Congress. 

Joliet  High  School,  Joliet,  111. 

Josephson,  A.  G.  S.,  John  Crerar  Library,  Chicago,  111. 
Kansas  Historical  Society,  Topeka,  Kans. 

Kansas  University,  Lawrence,  Kans. 

Keene  Public,  Keene,  N.  H. 

Kendall  Young,  Webster  City,  Iowa. 

Keokuk  Public,  Keokuk,  Iowa. 

Kunz,  Geo.  F.,  New  York  City. 

La  Porte  Public,  La  Porte,  Ind. 

Laconia  Public,  Laconia,  N.  H. 

Lafayette  College,  Easton,  Pa. 

Lancaster  Town,  Lancaster,  Mass. 

Leavenworth  Free  Public,  Leavenworth,  Kansas. 

Leland  Stanford  Jr.  University,  Stanford  University,  Cal. 


27 


Lenox,  Lenox,  Mass. 

Levy  Heywood  Memorial,  Gardner,  Mass. 
Leominster  Public,  Leominster,  Mass. 

Library  Bureau,  Boston,  Mass. 

Lincoln  City,  Lincoln,  Nebr. 

Lloyd,  Cincinnati,  Ohio. 

Lorain  Public,  Lorain,  Ohio. 

Los  Angeles  City  High  School,  Los  Angeles,  Cal. 

Los  Angeles  Public,  Los  Angeles,  Cal. 

Louisiana  State  University,  Baton  Rouge,  La. 

Loyal  Legion,  Boston,  Mass. 

Luther  College,  Decorah,  Iowa. 

MacClean,  E.  A.,  New  York  City. 

*McGill  University,  Montreal,  Can. 

Maclure,  Pittsford,  Vt. 

Madison  Free,  Madison,  Wis. 

Maine  State,  Augusta,  Me. 

Malden  Public,  Malden,  Mass. 

Manchester  City,  Manchester,  N.  H. 

Maryland  State,  Annapolis,  Md. 

Massachusetts  Institute  of  Technology,  Boston,  Mass. 
*Massachusetts  State  Library,  Boston,  Mass. 
Mattapoisett,  Free  Public,  Mattapoisett,  Mass. 
Medford  Public,  Medford,  Mass. 

Menomonie  Memorial,  Menomonie,  Wis. 

Mercer  University,  Macon,  Ga. 

Michigan  College  of  Mines,  Houghton,  Mich. 
Michigan  State,  Lansing,  Mich. 

Michigan  State  Normal  College,  Ypsilanti,  Mich. 
*Michigan  University,  Ann  Arbor,  Mich. 

Middleboro  Public,  Middleboyo,  Mass. 

Millicent,  Fairhaven,  Mass. 

Milton  Public,  Milton,  Mass. 

Milwaukee  Public,  Milwaukee,  Wis. 

Milwaukee  Public  Museum,  Milwaukee,  Wis. 


28 


Minneapolis  Public,  Minneapolis,  Minn. 

Minnesota  Library  Commission,  Minneapolis,  Minn. 
Minnesota  State,  St.  Paul,  Minn. 

*Minnesota  University,  Minneapolis,  Minn. 

Missouri  University,  Columbia,  Mo. 

Missoula  Free  Public,  Missoula,  Mont. 

Montana  State,  Helena,  Mont. 

Montana  University,  Missoula,  Mont. 

Montgomery  Public,  Montgomery,  Ala. 

Moore  Memorial,  Greene,  N.  Y. 

Moorestown  Free,  Moorestown,  N.  J. 

Morrison-Reeves,  Richmond,  Ind. 

Mount  Holyoke  College,  South  Hadley,  Mass. 

Mount  Vernon  Public,  Mount  Vernon,  N.  Y. 

Nahant  Public,  Nahant,  Mass. 

Nashville  Carnegie,  Nashville,  Tenn. 

*Nebraska  University,  Lincoln,  Nebr. 

Nevada  Public,  Nevada,  Iowa. 

Nevins  Memorial,  Methuen,  Mass. 

New  Bedford  Public,  New  Bedford,  Mass. 

New  Britain  Institute,  New  Britain,  Conn. 

New  Hampshire  State,  Concord,  N.  H. 

New  Haven  Free  Public,  New  Haven,  Conn. 

New  Jersey  State,  Trenton,  N.  J. 

New^  London  Public,  New  London,  Conn. 

New  Mexico  Col.  of  Agr.  and  Mech.  Arts,  Mesilla  Park,  N. 
*New  Orleans  Public,  New  Orleans,  La. 

New  York  Mercantile,  New  York  City. 

*New  York  Public,  New  York  City. 

New  York  Public  (Circulating  Dept.),  New  York  City, 
New  York  Society  Library,  New  York  City. 

*New  York  State,  Albany,  N.  Y. 

Newark  Public,  Newark,  N.  J. 

Newberry,  Chicago,  111. 

Newton  Free,  Newton,  Mass. 


29 


North  Adams  Public,  North  Adams,  Mass. 
North  Carolina  University,  Chapel  Hill,  N.  C. 
Northwestern  University,  Evanston,  111. 
Norton  Public,  Norton,  Mass. 

Norwalk  Public,  Norwalk,  Conn. 

Ohio  State,  Columbus,  Ohio. 

Ohio  State  University,  Columbus,  Ohio. 
Oklahoma  University,  Norman,  Okla. 

Omaha  Free  Public,  Omaha,  Nebr. 

Ontario  Agricultural  College,  Guelph,  Canada. 
Oshkosh  Public,  Oshkosh,  Wis. 

Oshkosh  State  Normal  School,  Oshkosh,  Wis. 
Osterhout  Free,  Wilkesbarre,  Pa. 

Ottumwa  Public,  Ottumwa,  Iowa. 

Owatonna  Free  Public,  Owatonna,  Minn. 

P.  M.  Musser  Public,  Muscatine,  Iowa. 
Packard  School,  Lawrence,  Mass. 

Painesville  Public,  Painesville,  Ohio. 

Parsons  Memorial,  Alfred,  Me. 

Passaic  Public,  Passaic,  N.  J. 

Paterson  Free  Public,  Paterson,  N.  J. 

Paxton  Public,  Paxton,  111. 

Peabody  Institute,  Danvers,  Mass. 

Peabody  Institute,  Peabody,  Mass. 
Pennsylvania  State  College,  State  College,  Pa. 
*Pennsylvania  University,  Philadelphia,  Pa. 
*Philadelphia  Free,  Philadelphia,  Pa. 
Plainfield  Public,  Plainfield,  N.  J. 

Pomona  Public,  Pomona,  Cal. 

Port  Huron  Public,  Port  Huron,  Mich. 
Portage  Free  Public,  Portage,  Wis. 

Portland  Library  Association,  Portland,  Oreg. 
Portland  Public,  Portland,  Me. 

Pratt  Institute  Free,  Brooklyn,  N.  Y. 
Princeton  University,  Princeton,  N.  J. 


30 


Providence  Athenaeum,  Providence,  R.  I. 

Queen sborough,  Long  Island  City,  N.  Y. 

Radcliffe  College,  Cambridge,  Mass. 

Reading  Public,  Reading,  Pa. 

Reuben  McMillan  Free,  Youngstown,  Ohio. 
Richardson,  E.  C.,  Princeton,  N.  J. 

Richmond  College,  Richmond,  Ya. 

River  Falls  State  Normal  School,  River  Falls,  Wis. 
Rockford  Public,  Rockford,  111. 

Roswell  P.  Flower  Memorial,  Watertown,  N.  Y. 
Rutgers  College,  New  Brunswick,  N.  J. 

Rutland  Free,  Rutland,  Yt. 

Sage,  West  Bay  City,  Mich. 

St.  Johnsbury  Athenaeum,  St.  Johnsbury,  Yt. 

St.  Joseph  Free  Public,  St.  Joseph,  Mo. 

St.  Louis  Mercantile,  St.  Louis,  Mo. 

*St.  Louis  Public,  St.  Louis,  Mo. 

St.  Paul  Public,  St.  Paul,  Minn. 

Salem  Public,  Salem,  Mass. 

Salt  Lake  City  Public,  Salt  Lake  City,  Utah. 

San  Antonio  Carnegie,  San  Antonio,  Tex. 

San  Bernardino  Public,  San  Bernardino,  Cal. 

San  Diego  Free  Public,  San  Diego,  Cal. 

*San  Francisco  Mechanics  Institute,  San  Francisco,  Cal. 
San  Francisco  Public,  San  Francisco,  Cal. 

Schenectady  Public,  Schenectady,  N.  Y. 

Schmidt,  A.  F.  W.,  Library  of  Congress. 

Scranton  Public,  Scranton,  Pa. 

*Seattle  Public,  Seattle,  Wash. 

Seymour,  Auburn,  N.  Y. 

Sheboygan  Public,  Sheboygan,  Wis. 

Sidney  Public,  Sidney,  Ohio. 

Silas  Bronson,  Waterbury,  Conn. 

Slade,  W.  A.,  Library  of  Congress. 

Solberg,  Thorvald,  Library  of  Congress. 


31 


Somerville  Public,  Somerville,  Mass. 

South  Manchester  Free,  South  Manchester,  Conn. 
Springfield  City,  Springfield,  Mass. 

Squire,  Mrs.  Andrew,  Cleveland,  Ohio. 

Stephenson  Public,  Marinette,  Wis. 

Sterling  Public,  Sterling,  111. 

Steubenville  Carnegie,  Steubenville,  Ohio. 

Superior  Public,  Superior,  Wis. 

Sweet,  Miss  Belle,  Urbana,  111. 

Syracuse  Public,  Syracuse,  N.  Y. 

Syracuse  University,  Syracuse,  N.  Y. 

Taunton  Public,  Taunton,  Mass. 

*Texas  University,  Austin,  Tex. 

Theresa  Free,  Theresa,  N.  Y. 

Thomas  Crane  Public,  Quincy,  Mass. 

Title  Guaranty  & Trust  Co.,  Scranton,  Pa. 

Toledo  Public,  Toledo,  Ohio. 

Torrington,  Torrington,  Conn. 

Trenton  Free  Public,  Trenton,  N.  J. 

Trinity  College,  Hartford,  Conn. 

Tyler  Public,  Tyler,  Tex. 

U.  S.  Biological  Survey  (Dept.  Agr. ),  Washington,  D.  C. 

U.  S.  Bureau  of  American  Kepublics,  Washington,  D.  C. 

U.  S.  Bureau  of  Animal  Industry  (Dept.  Agr.),  Washing- 
ton, D.  C. 

U.  S.  Bureau  of  Chemistry  (Dept.  Agr.),  Washington,  D.  C. 
U.  S.  Bureau  of  Fisheries  (Dept.  Com.),  Washington,  D.  C. 
U.  S.  Bureau  of  Labor  (Dept.  Com.),  Washington,  D.  C. 

U.  S.  Bureau  of  Forestry  (Dept.  Agr.),  Washington,  D.  C. 
U.  S.  Coast  and  Geodetic  Survey  (Dept.  Com.),  AVashing- 
ton,  D.  C. 

U.  S.  Dept,  of  Agriculture,  Washington,  D.  C. 

U.  S.  Dept,  of  Commerce  and  Labor. 

U.  S.  Division  of  Botanical  Investigation  (Dept.  Agr.), 
Washington,  D.  C. 


32 


U.  S.  Division  (2d)  Military  Information  (War  Dept.), 
Washington,  D.  C. 

U.  S.  Division  of  Plants  (Nat.  Museum),  Washington,  D.  C. 
U.  S.  Geological  Survey,  Washington,  D.  C. 

TJ.  S.  National  Bureau  of  Standards,  (Dept,  of  Com.)  Wash- 
ington D.  C. 

U.  S.  Naval  Academy,  Annapolis,  Md. 

U.  S.  School  of  Submarine  Defense,  Fort  Totten,  N.  Y. 

U.  S.  Treasury  Dept.,  Washington,  D.  C. 

U.  S.  War  Dept.,  Washington,  D.  C. 

University  Club,  New  York  City. 

Utica  Public,  Utica,  N.  Y. 

Yassar  College,  Poughkeepsie,  N.  Y. 

Vermont  State,  Montpelier,  Yt. 

Vermont  University,  Burlington,  Yt. 

Virginia  State,  Richmond,  Ya. 

Virginia  Union  University,  Richmond,  Ya. 

Walpole  Public,  Walpole,  Mass. 

Walpole  Town,  Walpole,  N.  H. 

Washington  University,  Seattle,  Wash. 

Watertown  Free  Public,  Watertown,  Mass. 

Webster  iree  Circulating,  New  York  City. 

Wells  College,  Aurora,  N.  Y. 

Wellesley  College,  Wellesley,  Mass. 

Wesleyan  University,  Middletown,  Conn. 

West  Hartford  Free,  West  Hartford,  Conn. 

West  Virginia  University,  Morgantown,  W.  Ya. 

V/estern  Theological  Seminary,  Allegheny,  Pa. 

Westfield  Athenaeum,  Westfield,  Mass. 

Westmount,  Westmount,  P.  Q, 

Wharton  Public,  Wharton,  N.  J. 

Wheeling  Public,  Wheeling,  W.  Ya. 

W7ilmington  Institute  Free,  Wilmington,  Del. 

Windsor  Library  Ass’n,  Windsor,  Yt. 

Winthrop  Public,  WTinthrop,  Mass. 


31528—04 3 


33 


Wisconsin  Free  Library  Commission,  Madison,  Wis. 
* Wisconsin  State  Historical,  Madison,  Wis. 

Withers  Public,  Bloomington,  111. 

Worcester  Free  Public,  Worcester,  Mass. 

Wright,  J.  A.,  Bellevue,  Ohio. 

Wyoming  University,  Laramie,  Wyo. 

Yale  Law  School,  New  Haven,  Conn. 

Yale  University,  New  Haven,  Conn. 

Y.  M.  C.  Association  Library,  Albany,  N.  Y. 

Y.  M.  C.  Association  Library,  Manhattan,  N.  Y. 

Y.  M.  C.  Association  Library,  Mobile,  Ala. 

Zahm,  Rev.  Ur.  J.  A.,  Notre  Uame,  Ind. 

o 


34 


u. « . LIBRARY  OF  CONGRESS 


NOTES  FOR  THE  LOUISIANA  PURCHASE  EXPOSITION 
ST.  LOUIS,  MO.,  1904 

No.  4 


BINDINGS 

. v c - »»  w J * 

t 


WASHINGTON 

GOVERNMENT  PRINTING  OFFICE 

1904 


LIBRARY  OF  CONGRESS. 


Binding  Exhibit. 

This  exhibit  consists  of  dummy  volumes,  most  of  which  are 
made  in  imitation  of  the  original  volumes  as  bound  in  the  Library 
Bindery.  These  dummies  illustrate  the  various  applications  of 
the  principal  binding  materials,  the  styles  of  lettering  commonly 
in  use,  and  a few  minor  details  concerning  the  binding. 

A brief  description  of  the  uses  of  the  binding  materials  follows 
below.  The  dummies  are  numbered  from  1-18  in  the  top  panel 
and  are  referred  to  by  their  number. 

In  addition  to  the  bound  volumes,  there  are  included  four  com- 
binations of  blank  sheets,  designed  td  illustrate  the  most  notice- 
able stages  in  the  process  of  binding  before  the  “finishing,” 
including  the  “gathering,”  the  “sewing,”  and  the  “forwarding.” 
These  sample  illustrations  are  numbered  from  19-22. 

TURKEY  MOROCCO — GOAT  (“HAUSSMANN”  GRADE). 

Used  for  durable  work,  when  the  outward  appearance  of  the 
book  is  especially  important,  as  in  binding  fine  editions,  illus- 
trated works,  rare,  old,  and  costly  books,  selected  reference  books, 
and  other  publications  prominent  from  their  location. 

See  bound  books  Nos.  1-5. 

The  lower  grades  of  1 1 morocco  ’ ’ are  not  recommended  generally, 
though  they  make  a fair  appearance  when  first  used. 

Imitation  “morocco”  or  hoc  (lambskin)  may  be  used  for  thin 
books  and  pamphlets  in  the  classes  noted  above,  since  sC  thick 

f 13693 


leather  is  usually  shaved  thin  for  such  use  and  by  this  process 
loses  its  strength.  This  leather  is  often  sold  under  the  name  of 
“morocco.” 

See  bound  book  No.  6. 

COWHIDE — KNOWN  AS  1 1 AMERICAN  RUSSIA”  OR  AS  1 L IMITATION 
RUSSIA.” 

Used  commonly  as  a substitute  for  less  durable  leathers,  such 
as  “roan,”  “sheep,”  “calf,”  and  the  lower  grades  of  so-called 
“morocco.”  Especially  useful  for  binding  fiction  and  popular 
books  of  the  smaller  book  sizes;  also,  to  secure  a better  lettering 
surface  than  that  of  cloth  or  duck.  May  be  used  also  in  many 
cases  of  doubt. 

See  bound  books  Nos.  7-9. 

Split  or  shaved  cowhide  is  used  for  pamphlet  bindings  wrhen  a 
good  lettering  surface  is  important 

See  bound  book  No.  10. 

In  general,  leather  bindings  are  most  desirable  for  constant 
handling;  but,  under  the  dry  heat  and  the  light  of  the  library 
stacks,  leathers  of  modern  tannage,  if  not  handled,  become  dry 
and  brittle.  This  fact,  considered  in  connection  with  the  cost  of 
material,  induces  the  use  of  the  following  substitutes,  i.  e.,  “duck,” 
“cloth,”  and  “buckram.”  It  may  be  noted  here  that  the  num- 
ber of  times  which  a book  can  be  rebound  is  usually  limited,  since 
taking  apart  and  resewing  injures  the  back. 

DUCK  (OR  CANVAS). 

For  a large  proportion  of  the  books  which  find  a place  on  the 
shelves  of  the  public  libraries,  duck  of  suitable  quality  is  probably 
the  most  durable  and  economical  binding  material  in  use.  Its 
special  value  is  found  in  binding  rather  large  books,  not  constantly 
handled.  It  is  understood  that  a good  duck  binding  will  stand 
upon  the  shelves  for  centuries,  while  most  leathers  of  modern 
tannage  are  likely  to  dry  out,  to  become  brittle  and  lose  their 


4 


“life”  after  standing  on  the  shelves  for  a few  years.  The  life  of 
the  average  modern  leather  binding  has  been  estimated  to  be  thirty 
years. 

The  uses  of  duck  are  illustrated  by  bound  books  Nos.  11-14.  Nos. 
11  and  12  are  bound  in  cotton  duck;  No.  13,  in  linen  duck;  No. 
14,  in  linen  duck  of  extra  quality.  Duck  is  used  also  for  newspaper 
bindings,  with  lettering  in  black,  direct,  without  the  use  of  the  red 
or  black  leather  labels. 

CLOTH. 

Cloth  supplies  the  least  expensive  bindings.  For  some  classes 
of  books,  found  in  every  large  library  in  great  numbers,  it  is  as 
durable  as  the  most  ornamental,  expensive  binding.  It  is  used 
for  books  of  ordinary  size,  such  as  remain  on  the  shelves  most  of 
the  time  with  an  occasional  use  for  brief  reference;  also  for  pam- 
phlets, bound  singly.  It  is  a binding  which  will  not  endure  con- 
stant handling,  as  will  leather  or  duck;  but,  like  duck  and  unlike 
leather,  it  will  stand  on  the  shelves,  under  normal  conditions, 
for  years  without  cracking  or  otherwise  losing  its  original  strength. 

See  bound  books  Nos.  15-17. 

BUCKRAM. 

Use,  the  same  as  “cloth.”  Leather  labels  can  be  adopted  to 
distinguish,  at  a glance,  a documentary  set. 

See  bound  book  No.  18. 

Direct  lettering  on  ‘ ‘ cloth  ” or  on  “ buckram  ’ ’ should  be  the  least 
possible,  as,  unlike  leather,  these  materials  present  bad  surfaces 
for  lettering  by  hand. 

THE  BOOK  DURING  BINDING. 

No.  19. 

The  sheets  folded  and  gathered. 

5 


No.  20. 


The  sheets  sewed  on  raised  hands,  known  as  “flexible”  sewing. 
See  bound  book  No.  3 for  the  appearance  of  the  back  of  the  fin- 
ished book  sewed  “flexible.”  It  is  the  best  mode  of  sewdng,  but 
on  account  of  the  time  required  it  is  not  much  used  at  present. 

No.  21. 

The  sheets  sewed  by  the  use  of  saw  cuts — the  ordinary  method, 
on  account  of  its  cheapness. 


No.  22. 

The  book  partly  “forwarded.”  The  sheets  are  sewed  and 
laced  into  the  boards  ready  for  the  covering  of  leather  or  of  duck. 

After  “ forwarding,”  the  final  process  is  the  “ finishing.”  The 
chief  part  of  this  work  is  the  addition  of  the  gilt  lettering  and  of 
the  “ tooling.”  The  books  in  this  exhibit  are  “ blind  tooled  ” — 
that  is,  without  gilt — except  No.  6,  which  is  finished  with  a plain 
fillet.  If  a cloth  binding  were  intended,  the  book  would  not  be 
1 1 laced J ’ into  the  boards. 

Each  book  contains  a typewritten  description  of  the  material  in  which 
it  is  bound , and  the  uses  appropriate  to  the  material. 


o 


6 


Uth 

■ OF  Th't 

IlVERSITY  of  ILLINOIS. 

BRARY  OF  CONGRESS 

NOTES  FOR  THE  LOUISIANA  PURCHASE  EXPOSITION 
ST*  LOUIS,  MO*,  1904 

No*  5 


MANUSCRIPTS 

f 


WASHINGTON 

GOVERNMENT  PRINTING  OFFICE 

1904 


UNIVERSITY  OF  ILLINOIS 
LIBRARY 

BOOK  CLASS  VOLUME 

Q'l/V'&'k  v.*5 


I U-  5 9 4 vv  o 
V-  5 


THE  MANUSCRIPTS  DIVISION  OF  THE  LIBRARY 
OF  CONGRESS. 


In  1897  the  Library  of  Congress  established  a Division  of  Manu- 
scripts, which  should  receive  all  manuscript  material  of  a historical 
nature  that  was  given  to  the  Library  or  purchased  by  it.  Before 
that  date  the  manuscripts  were  included  in  the  general  collections 
and  comprised  but  a small  number,  in  part  obtained  by  the  pur- 
chase of  the  libraries  of  Thomas  Jefferson  and  Peter  Force.  The 
earlier  manuscript  collections  purchased  by  the  Government  had 
been  deposited  in  the  various  Executive  Departments,  the  Depart- 
ment of  State  being  naturally  the  largest  recipient.  In  the  pres- 
sure of  routine  business  little  attention  could  be  given  either  to 
the  calendaring  or  publication  of  this  material,  thus  leaving  them 
available  rather  to  the'special  student  than  to  the  general  investi- 
gator. It  was  with  the  purpose  of  creating  one  central  place  of 
deposit  in  which  there  should  be  every  precaution  taken  for  the 
safety  of  the  manuscripts,  where  there  should  be  a force  adequate 
to  listing  and  making  the  documents  accessible  to  the  general 
public,  that  the  Division  of  Manuscripts  was  established.  It  is 
fitted  throughout  with  strictly  modern  appliances  for  receiving, 
handling,  and  storing  manuscript  material.  It  occupies  a gallery 
in  the  library  containing  specially  devised  cases  for  the  display  of 
the  material,  with  specially  designed  steel  safes  for  the  more  valu- 
able documents,  with  a force  of  repairers  and  binders  of  special 
skill  and  knowledge  in  the  delicate  task  of  restoring,  repairing, 
mounting,  and  binding  papers  which  have  suffered  through  injury 
by  moisture,  by  fire,  or  by  such  other  chances  as  threaten  old 

f 11696 8 


papers  kept  in  private  hands.  As  the  collections  are  received  they 
are  fully  treated  in  every  detail  until  they  are  placed  in  permanent 
form,  hound  in  volumes,  in  the  cases  set  apart  for  their  reception. 
Only  an  examination  of  the  process  employed  can  give  an  idea 
of  the  careful  attention  paid  to  this  subject  of  preventing  loss  or 
injury  to  the  rapidly  increasing  collections  now  centering  in  the 
Library  of  Congress.  Examples  of  this  repair  work  may  be  seen 
in  the  exhibit  of  the  Library  in  this  exposition,  but  each  docu- 
ment receives  a different  treatment  suited  to  its  needs,  and  days 
may  be  spent  upon  a single  manuscript  in  order  that  every  possi- 
ble fragment  may  be  placed  in  its  proper  position  and  in  such  a 
form  that  it  can  never  be  lost  or  misplaced. 

The  more  important  collections  now  in  the  Library  of  Congress 
may  be  briefly  described,  to  show  the  nature  of  the  material  which 
it  has  obtained  in  the  past  and  is  obtaining  from  time  to  time. 

1.  The  Peter  Force  collection,  rich  in  colonial  and  Revolution- 
ary history.  It  was  collected  by  the  ardent  book  gatherer,  Peter 
Force,  of  Washington,  and  was  purchased  by  the  Government, 
with  his  library,  in  1867.  In  connection  with  the  American 
Archives,  Mr.  Force  had  many  opportunities  to  examine  original 
material.  Some  of  this  he  obtained,  but  the  larger  part  of  his  col- 
lection was  composed  of  transcripts  of  original  material  then  in 
private  hands  or  in  State  keeping.  What  was  in  private  hands 
has  in  some  measure  since  been  lost,  and  these  transcripts  serve 
as  a substitute.  The  copies  from  the  State  archives  serve  to  sup- 
plement the  original  material  in  Washington.  At  the  dispersal  of 
George  Chalmers’s  manuscripts  Mr.  Force  obtained  many  impor- 
tant documents  relating  to  the  colonial  history  of  America,  and 
notably  concerning  the  colonies  of  New  Hampshire,  Massachu- 
setts, and  Maryland.  Among  his  accumulations  was  the  impor- 
tant correspondence  of  Admiral  Charles  Wager  and  Vice-Admiral 
Edward  Vernon,  which  is  concerned  with  naval  operations  in  the 
West  Indies  and  on  the  coast  of  North  America  at  the  time  that 
Great  Britain  was  seeking  to  establish  her  naval  superiority  in 
those  quarters.  In  the  Force  collection  was  also  an  extensive  col- 
lection of  Washington  material,  being  papers  which  had  once 


4 


belonged  to  Washington,  bearing  upon  his  military  service  and 
the  Revolution  in  general;  As  publisher  of  a newspaper  in  the 
city  of  Washington,  Mr.  Force  obtained  much  that  is  rare  and 
curious  touching  the  history  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  while 
from  private  collections  he  had  obtained  many  individual  docm- 
ments  of  the  highest  historical  value  and  interest,  like  the  Associ- 
ation of  the  Continental  Congress  of  1774,  the  Shippen  Papers,  the 
correspondence  of  William  Thornton  respecting  his  steamboat, 
and  many  similar  examples. 

2.  From  the  library  of  Thomas  Jefferson  were  obtained  manu- 
script materials  of  a unique  description.  The  original  material 
and  transcripts  which  he  obtained  or  prepared  in  connection  with 
the  compilation  of  Virginia  laws  thus  came  into  possession  of  the 
Library.  With  them  were  the  earliest  records  of  Virginia  legis- 
lative proceedings,  such  as  the  “ Record  of  the  Virginia  Company 
(1619-1624),’ ’ and  eight  volumes  of  the  “Laws  and  Orders  of  the 
General  Assembly  (1622-1712), ’’  and  “Minutes  of  the  Assembly,” 
with  other  colonial  records.  Together  they  constitute  a very  im- 
portant collection  in  colonial  history. 

3.  The  Rochambeau  Papers,  purchased  by  Congress  in  1882. 
They  include  the  official  papers  and  correspondence  of  the  Gen- 
eral, together  with  the  diary  or  journal  kept  during  the  winter  of 
1780-1781. 

4.  Many  volumes  relating  to  the  history  of  the  Spanish  posses- 
sions in  America  in  the  sixteenth  and  seventeenth  centuries.  Some 
of  these  are  transcripts,  but  the  larger  part  is  of  original  material 
obtained  from  many  sources.  They  have  been  supplemented  re- 
cently by  the  acquisition  of  the  Spanish  records  of  New  Mexico, 
of  Porto  Rico,  and  of  Guam.  The  combination  of  this  material, 
although  still  suffering  many  losses,  offers  a very  fair  and  continu- 
ous account  of  Spanish  domination  of  the  colonies.  Special  atten- 
tion is  being  given  to  increasing  this  collection  in  order  that  the 
history  of  the  new  dependencies  of  the  United  States  can  be  writ- 
ten. Attention  has  also  been  given  to  the  English,  Spanish,  and 
Dutch  colonies  in  North  America,  as  their  history  is  part  of  the 
history  of  America. 


5 


5.  In  military  and  naval  history  the  collections  of  the  War  and 
Navy  Departments  are  naturally  richer  than  those  of  the  Library 
of  Congress.  Enough  has,  however,  been  obtained  from  private 
sources  to  give  a separate  division  devoted  to  these  manuscripts. 
The  papers  of  John  Paul  Jones,  of  Edward  Preble,  of  John  Barry, 
of  David  Porter,  and  the  Marine  Committee  of  the  Continental 
Congress,  are  some  of  the  items  contained  in  it,  relating  to  naval 
history;  and  in  military  history  there  are  many  orderly  books, 
covering  the  wars  in  which  the  nation  has  engaged,  as  well  as  of 
the  colonial  contests. 

Since  the  establishment  of  the  Division  of  Manuscripts  the  accu- 
mulation of  material  has  been  more  rapid.  The  letter-books  and 
diary  of  Robert  Morris,  Superintendent  of  Finance  in  the  Revolu- 
tion, were  first  acquired  after  having  been  for  many  years  refused 
to  students  for  historical  purposes.  Not  only  are  they  of  value  for 
Revolutionary  history,  but  they  throw  much  light  upon  Morris’s 
later  career  and  the  misfortunes  arising  from  his  land  speculations. 

A very  extensive  mercantile  correspondence  conducted  by  the 
American  house  in  Richmond,  composed  of  Ellis  & Allen  and  their 
• successors,  covering  a period  of  more  than  seventy  years,  and 
describing  the  vicissitudes  of  American  commerce  during  the 
Napoleonic  wars  and  the  later  decay  of  the  tobacco  trade,  was 
acquired  at  the  same  time.  It  contains  material  for  the  history  of 
one  of  the  most  interesting  phases  of  American  commerce,  and  its 
very  size,  comprising  more  than  56,000  documents,  is  assurance 
of  its  completeness.  Account  books  from  Maryland  and  Virginia 
plantations  and  mercantile  houses  have  since  been  acquired  which 
will  enable  the  students  to  carry  the  history  of  the  tobacco  trade 
into  colonial  times. 

The  papers  of  Salmon  Portland  Chase  were,  also  acquired  by 
purchase,  and  the  more  interesting  have  since  been  published  by 
the  American  Historical  Association.  Although  partial  in  its 
extent  it  contains  enough  to  show  the  prominence  of  Mr.  Chase 
in  political  agitation  and  service,  and  in  his  judicial  career. 

In  1903,  the  Andrew  Jackson  Papers  were  given  to  the  Library 
of  Congress  by  the  family  of  Montgomery  Blair.  Mr.  Blair  re- 


6 


ceived  these  papers  from  Mr.  Jackson  and  his  heir  in  order  that 
they  might  he  used  for  biographical  purposes  by  Amos  Kendall. 
This  purpose  was  never  carried  into  effect  and  the  manuscripts 
carefully  preserved  are  remarkably  full  of  Jackson’s  military 
career,  and  contain  some  of  the  most  important  public  and  private 
papers  of  his  administrations.  For  the  first  time  the  career  of  the 
man  and  his  relations  with  his  contemporaries  can  be  told  from 
his  point  of  view.  For  the  collection  is  replete  with  his  personal 
memoranda,  statements  of  public  events  and  policy,  and  drafts  of 
his  private  correspondence. 

By  gift  also  there  came  to  the  Library  the  papers  of  Jackson’s 
successor  in  the  Presidency,  Martin  Van  Buren,  the  donor  being 
Mrs.  Smith  Thompson  Van  Buren,  of  .New  York.  This  collection 
contains  the  manuscript  of  Van  Buren’ s autobiography  prepared 
late  in  life  but  never  published,  together  with  an  extraordinary 
series  of  letters  between  Jackson  and  Van  Buren,  more  than  270 
in  number,  and  most  of  them  of  a private  and  confidential  char- 
acter. The  letters  from  other  of  Van  Buren’ s correspondents 
were  such  as  he  himself  selected  for  preservation  and  are  there- 
fore naturally  of  a character  to  throw  much  light  upon  his  public 
acts  and  political  policies. 

Supplemental  to  the  Jackson  and  Van  Buren  Papers  are  those  of 
James  Knox  Polk,  which  were  purchased  by  the  Library  of  Con- 
gress from  the  adopted  niece  of  Mr.  Polk.  This  collection  is  rich  in 
material  relating  to  the  history  of  Tennessee,  and  to  Polk’s  public 
career  in  Washington  before  and  during  his  Presidency.  The  ex- 
pansion of  the  country,  subsequent  to  the  Mexican  war,  is  told  in 
great  fullness  by  those  who  were  the  most  active  agents  in  bringing 
it  to  pass.  These  three  collections  contain  more  than  32,000  docu- 
ments and  supply  the  means  of  a thorough  comprehension  of  the 
political  history  of  the  country  for  more  than  fifty  years. 

The  papers  of  Andrew  Johnson  are  particularly  notable,  al- 
though they  cover  his  career  only  after  1861 — his  early  papers 
having  been  destroyed  by  fire.  They  cover  his  services  as  Sena- 
tor, military  governor  of  Tennessee,  Vice-President,  President, 
and  ex-President.  The  picture  it  gives  of  a border  State  during 


7 


the  civil  war  is  probably  unique;  and  the  documents  he  received 
as  President  cover  some  of  the  most  exciting  and  far-reaching 
events  which  followed  the  peace  and  during  the  period  of  recon- 
struction. Mr.  Johnson  saved  everything,  and  his  collection  of 
some  15,000  documents  easily  takes  its  place  among  the  most 
important  of  the  collections  held  by  the  Library. 

Minor  collections  are  those  of  John  M.  Clayton,  Daniel  Webster, 
Mrs.  Dolly  Madison,  Henry  B.  Schoolcraft,  William  Thornton, 
John  Ambler,  and  a large  quantity  of  documents  and  correspond- 
ence received  from  various  custom-houses  of  the  United  States, 
illustrative  of  customs  methods  from  the  foundation  of  the 
National  Government. 

The  Webster  Papers  were  selected  by  the  biographer  of  Daniel 
Webster. 

The  papers  of  William  Thornton,  donated  to  the  Library  by 
Mr.  J.  Henley  Smith,  contain  among  other  interesting  material 
some  examples  of  his  engraving,  the  original  designs  for  the  Capi- 
tol at  Washington,  and  much  correspondence  on  scientific  matters. 

The  Ambler  Papers  relate  to  the  very  early  history  of  James- 
town, Va.,  comprising  maps,  surveys,  and  deeds  describing  the 
first  division  of  land  on  that  island. 

Eecognizing  that  the  Library  of  Congress  is  the  natural  center 
of  deposit  of  manuscript  material,  President  Eoosevelt  issued  an 
Executive  order  transferring  to  it  the  more  important  collections, 
long  in  the  keeping  of  the  Department  of  State.  A mere  mention 
of  these  collections  will  suffice  to  indicate  their  scope  and  impor- 
tance. The  Papers  of  the  Continental  Congress;  and  those  of 
George  Washington,  Thomas  Jefferson,  James  Madison,  James 
Monroe,  Benjamin  Franklin,  and  Alexander  Hamilton  together 
constitute  material  for  writing  the  history  of  the  nation  from 
1774-1816  with  a fullness  which  no  other  series  of  collections  could 
pretend  to  equal.  The  Library  of  Congress  is  already  in  possession 
of  the  most  important  aggregation  of  manuscripts  in  the  country, 
and  as  it  is  held  for  the  public  use,  and  open  to  every  investigator, 
it  offers  a very  high  public  utility,  and  one  that  will  inevitably 
become  greater  from  year  to  year. 


8 


MONROE’S  JOURNAL  OF  THE  NEGOTIATIONS 
FOR  THE  PURCHASE  OF  LOUISIANA. 

[From  the  original  manuscript  in  the  Library  of  Congress.  1 


Apr’l  27.  [1803.] 

Mr.  Marbois  came  to  my  lodgings  by  appointment  of  Mr.  Liv- 
ingston, at  two  o’clock  and  I being  indisposed  it  was  agreed  that 
I might  repose  as  it  suited  me.  Mr.  Marbois  open’d  the  conver- 
sation by  presenting  us  with  a project  of  a treaty  given  him  by 
the  gov1,  to  be  proposed  to  us,  wh.  he  admitted  he  thought  hard 
and  unreasonable;  he  presented  at  the  same  time  another  project 
wh.  he  called  his  own,  which  had  not  been  seen  by  the  gov1.,  but 
to  which  he  presumed  the  first  Consul  wod.  assent,  as  he  had  told 
him  he  wd.  not  insist  on  the  terms  contained  in  the  first,  and  wd. 
only  ask  or  propose  such  as  he  had  drawn  in  the  second;  but  to 
which  he  declared  that  the  first  consul  had  not  assented  explic- 
itly. M1.  Marbois  thought  himself  however  at  liberty  to  propose 
his  own  project  as  the  basis  of  our  negotiation.  That  project 
claimed  1000000.  <k  the  debts  due  our  citizens  estimated  at  20. 
more.  His  own  reduc’d  that  demand  to  80,  including  the  debt. 
There  were  some  other  deficiencies  between  them,  his  going  more 
into  detail,  in  the  form  of  a publick  act.  Mr.  Livingston  observed 
that  debt  was  a thing  to  be  provided  for  in  an  especial  manner; 
that  the  Consul  had  said  to  him  it  shod.  be  paid;  that  we  ought 
to  begin  from  pts  agreed  & proceed  to  difficulties — that  the  points 
agreed  were  the  debts  that  were  due  and  our  right  of  deposit.  Mr. 
Marbois  said  that  if  we  made  a treaty  on  the  gen1,  and  great  sub- 


9 


ject  of  the  Louisiana,  he  wod.  include  in  it  a provision  for  the 
debts;  that  if  he  did  not  make  a treaty  of  that  kind  he  wod.  have 
nothing  to  do  with  the  debts.  Mr.  Livingston  repeated  the  prom- 
ise of  the  Consul  &c  for  the  payment  of  them,  to  which  Mr.  Mar- 
bois  replied  that  he  did  not  mean  to  impair  the  form  of  our  claim 
founded  on  the  treaty  and  the  promise  of  the  gov1. — what  he 
meant  to  say  was,  that  if  our  negotiations  succeeded  in  the  object 
of  it,  the  debts  wod.  be  comprized  in  it  & provided  for,  and  if  it 
did  not  succeed,  he  wod.  leave  them  w~here  he  found  them;  the 
claim  wod.  still  be  supported  by  the  treaty  & any  assurance  Mr. 
Livingston  may  have  recd.  from  the  gov1,  since.  Mr.  Livingston 
still  pressing  the  high  ground  on  w\  the  claim  to  the  paym1.  of 
the  debt  rested,  Mr.  Marbois  observed  that  in  the  promise  referr’d 
to  no  time  was  fix’d,  or  sum  specified,  & intimated  that  the  Con- 
sul did  not  contemplate  a greater  sum  than  3 or  4 millions  of 
livres.  I then  observed  that  I thought  we  were  all  of  the  same 
opinion  respecting  the  debts  that  the  ground  on  wh.  they  stood 
wd.  not  be  impaired  by  the  failure  of  this  negotiation;  that  a pro- 
vision might  be  made  for  the  payment  of  them  by  it;  that  we  had 
better  go  on  to  the  other  object  & with  that,  went  to  examine 
and  discuss  the  project  presented  by  Mr.  Marbois.  One  of  the 
articles  contained  in  Mr.  Marbois’ s project,  proposed  that  the  pay- 
ment of  our  citizens  & the  French  gov1.  shod.  provide  in  equal  de- 
gree regarding  the  am1,  to  be  paid  to  each  party  by  the  month; 
that  is  that  neither  shod.  have  a priority  or  preference  to  the  other 
as  to  time  or  proportion.  Mr.  Livingston  insisted  that  the  pay- 
ment to  our  citizens  shod.  be  prompt  & full,  wh.  he  supposed  we 
might  make  without  rendering  ourselves  unable  to  meet  the  views 
of  the  French  gov1,  in  any  sum  that  we  might  stipulate  to  give  in 
point  of  time:  to  that  Mr.  Marbois  seemed  to  have  no  objection. 

My  colleague  took  Mr.  Marbois’ s project  with  him  and  bro1.  me 
one  very  loosely  drawn  founded  on  it,  which  with  our  communi- 
cations together  on  the  subject  and  the  modifications  we  gave  it, 
will  be  noted  hereafter. 

We  called  on  Mr.  Marbois  the  29th.  and  gave  him  our  project 

10 


which  we  read  to  him  & discussed.  We  proposed  to  offer  50.  mil- 
lions to  France  & 20.  on  acc*.  of  her  debt  to  the  citizens  of  the  U 
States,  making  70.  in  the  whole.  On  reading  that  art:  he  declared 
that  he  wod.  not  proceed  in  the  negotiations  on  a less  sum  than 
80.  millions,  since  it  wod.  be  useless  as  the  Consul  had  been  suffi- 
ciently explicit  on  that  point;  Indeed  he  assured  us  that  his 
government  had  never  positively  instructed  him  to  take  that  sum, 
but  that  as  he  had  told  the  Consul  it  was  enough,  that  he  wod.  ask 
no  more,  and  to  wh.  he  understood  the  Consul  as  giving  his  assent, 
he  Mr.  Marbois  had  thought  himself  authoris’d  to  accept  & propose 
it  to  us,  but  that  he  wd.  not  proceed  unless  we  agreed  to  give  it  on 
this  frank  and  explicit  decln.  on  his  part  & after  explaining  to  him 
the  motive  which  led  us  to  offer  that  sum,  we  agreed  to  accede 
to  his  idea  and  give  80.  millions.  He  asked  us  if  we  wd.  not 
advance  something  immediately,  we  replied,’  that  we  did  so  in 
discharge  of  their  debt  to  our  citizens;  that  they  had  suffer’d  and 
it  was  for  the  interest  of  France  as  well  as  the  U States  that  they 
shod.  be  promptly  paid,  or  as  soon  as  possible.  To  the  payment 
in  stocks  he  did  not  object,  nor  did  he  say  anything  respecting 
the  loss  to  be  sustained  by  it:  he  asked  what  effect  the  protract- 
ing the  redemption  of  the  stock  for  15.  years  wod.  have  on  its 
value;  we  told  him  to  raise  its  price. 

On  the  proviso  to  the  commerc1.  stipulation  he  seemed  to  enter- 
tain a doubt,  but  on  our  showing  the  abuse  of  wh.  the  article  was 
capable  without  it,  being  not  simply  to  give  a preference  for  12 
years  to  French  vessels  & manufactures  over  those  of  other 
countries  in  the  ports  of  the  ceded  territory,  but  to  enable  France 
to  monopolize  the  carriage  of  the  exports  from  the  Mississippi, 
and  prevent  a single  article  raised  there  being  bro*.  from  the  other 
States,  such  as  tob°.  rice  &c,  He  admitted  such  a power  was  not 
sought  on  their  part. 

He  seemed  desirous  to  secure  by  some  strong  provision  the 
incorporation  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  ceded  territory  with  our 
union;  we  told  him  we  wod.  try  to  modify  the  article  to  suit  his 
ideas  as  fully  as  we  cod. — we  left  our  project  with  him,  in  expecta- 


11 


tion  of  hearing  from  him  soon  the  result,  as  he  said  he  shod.  see 
the  Consul  the  next  morning  on  the  subject.  He  informed  me 
that  Mr.  Talleyrand  had  asked  him  wh ether  I was  in  health  to  be 
presented  to  the  first  Consul,  & on  my  answer  in  the  affirmative; 
advised  me  to  let  him  know  it.  My  colleague  promised  as  we 
returned  home  to  inform  the  minister  the  next  day  that  I had 
recovered  my  health, — To  guard  against  accidents  however  I 
wrote  the  minister  to  that  effect  the  next  morning,  and  a note  to 
my  colleague  to  request  him  to  call  for  me  as  he  went  to  the  house 
of  the  minister.  Just  as  I was  ready  to  visit  the  minister  my  col- 
league returned  from  him,  & informed  me  that  it  was  arranged 
that  I shod.  be  presented  next  day,  that  is  on  the  first  day  of  May. 

May  1st.  Sunday. 

Accompanied  my  colleague  to  the  Palace  of  the  Louvre,  where 
I was  presented  by  him  to  the  Consul;  while  standing  in  the  cir- 
cle I recd.  a communication  by  the  prefect  of  the  palace  from  the 
minister,  stating  that  he  was  indisposed,  but  that  I must  present 
the  Consul  my  letter  of  credence,  & that  the  Consul  desired  I wod. 
•dine  with  him. 

When  the  Consul  came  round  to  me,  Mr.  Livingston  presented 
me  to  him,  on  which  the  Consul  observed  that  “he  was  glad  to 
see  me”  J suis  bien  aise  de  le  voir.  You  have  been  here  15  days, 
I told  him  I had — “you  speak  French,”  I replied  “a  little.” 
“you  had  a good  voyage”,  “yes”.  “You  came  in  a frigate” 
no,  in  a merchant  vessel  choosed  for  the  purpose”  Col:  Mercer 
was  presented;  says  he  “he  is  SecrL  of  legation”  “no  but  my 
friend’.  He  then  made  inquiries  of  Mr.  Livingston  and  his  seer3', 
how  their  families  were;  & then  turned  to  Mr.  Livingston  & 
myself  and  observed  that  our  affrs.  shod.  be  settled. 

We  dined  with  him.  After  dinner  when  we  retired  into  the 
saloon,  the  first  consul  came  up  to  me  and  asked  whether  the 
federal  city  grew  much.  I told  him  it  did.  How  many  inhabit- 
ants has  it?  It  is  j ust  commencing,  there  are  two  cities  near  it, 
one  above,  the  other  below,  on  the  great  river  Potomk.  wh.  two 
cities  if  united  with  fed1,  city  wod.  make  a respectable  town,  in 


12 


itself  it  contains  only  two  or  three  thousand  inhabitants.  Well; 
Mr.  Jefferson,  how  old  is  he?  ab1.  sixty.  Is  he  married  or  single; 
he  is  not  married — then  he  is  a gargon,  no,  he  is  a widower;  has 
he  children?  yes  two  daughters  who  are  married.  Does  he  reside 
always  at  the  fed1,  city,  generally.  Are  the  publick  buildings  there 
commodious,  those  for  the  congress  and  President  especially?  They 
are.  Y ou  the  Americans  did  brilliant  things  in  yr.  war  with  Eng- 
land, you  will  do  the  same  again.  We  shall  I am  persuaded 
always  behave  well  when  it  shall  be  our  lot  to  be  in  war.  You 
will  probably  be  in  war  with  them  again.  I replied  I did  not 
know,  that  that  was  an  important  question  to  decide  wdien  there 
wod.  be  an  occasion  for  it. 

At  1/2  after  eight  we  met  Mr.  Marbois  at  his  own  house,  in  con- 
formity to  an  appointment  which  wTe  made  with  him  at  the  Con- 
suls, and  entered  on  the  subject  of  our  proposed  treaty.  He  ob- 
jected to  the  first  art:  as  being  long  & containing  superfluities,  & 
showed  us  a remark  to  that  effect  on  it  by  the  department  of 
foreign  affr8.,  as  being  an  act  suited  to  a private  transaction  before 
a notary  publick.  He  objected  also  to  any  guarrantie  as  agnst. 
France  or  Spu.,  as  agnst.  France  as  useless,  since  the  cession  was 
as  strong  a guaranty  agnst.  her  as  she  wd.  make,  and  agnst.  Spn. 
as  improper  & useless  since  it  wod.  be  an  ungracious  act  to  her 
from  France,  & we  had  nothing  to  fear  from  Spain.  He  had  no 
objection  to  inserting  the  art:  of  the  treaty  of  II  defonso  by  which 
France  acquired  the  territory,  in  our  treaty,  & wod.  engage  her 
good  offices  with  Spain  in  support  of  our  negotiation  for  the  Flor- 
idas.  From  the  2d:  art.  we  agreed  to  strike  out  whatever  re- 
stricted the  application  of  publick  buildings  to  the  same  use  here- 
after; and  to  be  contented  with  the  security  of  of  property  to  indi- 
viduals: and  also  to  omit  the  obligation  to  transfer  the  archives 
&c  to  the  local  authorities.  The  arts:  at  the  close  of  our  project 
which  respected  the  cession  & transfer  of  the  territory  he  proposed 
to  put  together  in  the  commencement,  wh.  we  examined  & modified 
somewhat  by  consent,  that  which  respected  the  commerc1.  privi- 
ledge,  he  said  was  objected  to  in  the  proviso;  He  admitted  how- 


13 


ever  that  it  was  not  wished  or  contemplated  to  enjoy  more  than 
an  exemption  from  foreign  duties  in  favor  of  French  productions 
manufactures  & tonage  in  the  transportation  of  the  same  into  the 
ports  of  the  Mississippi,  but  not  to  affect  the  terms  on  wh.  our 
produce  shod.  be  carried  from  it,  since  he  readily  foresaw  that 
such  a power  might  be  greatly  abused.  I proposed  an  amend- 
ment which  was  in  sentiment  agreed  to.  To  the  payment  to  be 
made  them  in  stock,  and  the  mode  by  which  we  proposed  to 
ascertain  the  am4,  and  persons  entitled  to  the  debt  they  owed  our 
citizens,  he  said  objections  w~ere  entertained.  They  wish  the 
payment  to  be  made  here  Of  5.  millions  of  livres  the  month,, wh. 
wre  told  him  was  impossible — He  believed  it  was.  He  wished  the 
term  for  which  the  stock  was  irredeemable  to  be  omitted  & ad- 
justed afterwards  between  ourselves,  intimating  that  on  that  point 
difficulties  existed  with  his  gov4.  wh.  proceeded  from  want  of  time 
to  examine  it,  but  that  we  must  agree  something,  indeed  seemed 
to  assent  explicitly  to  our  ideas  on  the  subject.  On  our  explain- 
ing the  reasons  why  some  check  on  the  liquidation  of  the  debt  due 
our  citizens  was  necessary,  since  otherwise  the  sum  destined  to 
them  might  be  absorbed  by  liquidations  in  favor  of  Americans  not 
entitled,  or  even  persons  not  Americans,  he  admitted  the  propriety 
of  the  checks  we  proposed.  He  said  he  wod.  see  the  Consul  next 
morning,  fix  the  points  in  question,  & come  prepared  sometime  in 
the  course  of  that  day  to  conclude  & sign  the  treaty  as  of  yester- 
day, being  Saturday. 

May  2d.  we  actually  signed  the  treaty  and  convention  for  the 
sixty  millions  of  francs  to  France  in  the  French  language,  but  our 
copies  in  English  not  being  made  out  we  cod.  not  sign  in  our  lan- 
guage. They  were  however  prepar’d  & signed  in  two  or  three 
days  afterwards.  The  convention  respecting  American  claims 
took  some  time  & was  not  signed  till  about  the  8.  or  9th.  a more 
minute  view  of  this  business  as  promised  in  the  3d.  page  will  be 
annexed  hereafter. 

We  nominated  provisionally  Col:  John  Mercer  J.  C.  Barnett  & 
Wm.  McClure  to  examine  the  claims  of  Americans  on  the  French 


14 


gov1.,  and  perform  the  duties  assigned  to  our  bd.  by  the  convention 
respecting  that  subject. 

As  soon  as  we  had  dispatched  the  treaty  &c  by  Mr.  Hughes, 
with  duplicates  & triplicates,  I resolved  to  go  to  Sp11.  in  pursuit  of 
my  instructions,  which  Mr.  Livingston  approved  and  strongly 
urged,  with  that  view  I wrote  a note  to  the  minister  of  foreign 
affrs.  asking  the  good  offices  of  his  govfc.  with  Spn.  as  had  been 
promised  by  Mr.  Marbois  intimating  that  I wished  to  set  out  in  a 
few  days  for  Madrid.  On  the  Sunday  following  I dined  with 
Consul  Cambaceres,  who  arrived  late  from  the  council  at  St.  Cloud. 
The  party  was  not  large;  I sat  next  him;  he  observed  “ you  must 
not  go  to  Spain  at  present”.  I asked  his  reason.  He  replied  it 
is  not  the  time,  you  had  better  defer  it.  I revived  the  subject 
repeatedly  but  he  declined  going  more  into  it.  After  dinner  when 
we  were  in  the  saloon,  he  came  up  to  me,  and  on  my  telling  him 
he  had  given  me  some  concern  by  what  he  had  said,  he  replied 
“ it  was  only  his  opinion,  but  you  will  talk  on  the  subject  with  the 
minister  of  the  publick  treasury”  (Mr.  Marbois)  which  I promised. 
I went  immediately  to  Mr.  Marbois’ s but  he  was  not  at  home. 
Reflecting  on  the  hint  from  the  Consul  it  occurr’d  it  wod.  be 
proper  to  call  on  the  ambassador  of  Spu.  & confer  with  him  on  the 
subject,  as  I had  always  intended  before  I set  out  for  Spn.  I 
found  him  at  home  with  two  Spanish  gentlemen,  one  the  husband 
of  the  daughter  of  Don  Galvez  who  was  also  present.  I told  him 
that  I intended  going  to  Spn.  to  treat  for  Florida  with  the  minis- 
ters of  his  catholic  majesty,  & asked  what  he  thought  of  it.  He 
replied  with  great  candor  that  he  wished  the  affr.  amicably  settled 
between  our  govts.  & that  two  days  before  he  had  written  to  his 
court  by  an  extraordinary  courier  at  the  desire  of  Mr.  Livingston 
to  propose  to  it  the  question  whether  it  would  make  the  cession 
to  the  U States,  and  as  I understood  to  authorize  him  to  treat  here 
for  it.  As  Mr.  Livingston  had  never  spoken  to  me  on  the  subject, 
as  he  had  proposed  my  going  to  Spn.,  or  at  least  given  his  decided 
opinion  that  I ought  to  go  there,  this  information  surprised  me 
much,  especially  when  I recollected  that  he  not  only  had  no 


15 


power  to  treat  on  that  subject,  but  knew  that  it  was  committed  to 
others.  I asked  when  he  expected  an  answer  to  his  letter?  He 
said  if  it  was  sent  by  an  extry  courier  it  might  be  in  12.  days,  as  it 
required  7.  to  go  and  as  many  to  return;  & it  had  been  sent  2. 
already:  that  if  it  came  by  the  ordinary  post  it  wod.  take  a much 
longer  time  as  it  required  12.  days  to  convey  a letter  from  Paris 
to  Madrid  in  that  mode.  I told  him  that  I thought  I shod.  go  to 
Madrid  & then  explained  to  him  something  of  the  nature  of  the 
corn11.  wh.  existed  for  treating  with  his  government  it  being  thought 
by  ours  more  respectful  to  his  to  treat  at  Madrid  than  here,  but 
without  giving  cause  to  infer  that  1 disapproved  the  measure  taken 
by  M1'.  Livingston  or  indeed  that  I was  ignorant  of  it. 

Next  day  Mr.  Livingston  & myself  called  on  Mr.  Marbois  on 
some  question  relative  to  the  treaty  &c.  On  our  return  he  asked 
me  when  I shod.  set  out  to  Spain?  I told  him  that  I had  called 
on  the  Marquiss  D’azara  to  confer  with  him  on  the  subject  the 
night  before,  and  of  the  step  he  had  taken  at  his  request  to  draw 
the  subject  here;  that  under  those  circumstances  it  wod.  be  an 
idle  errand  for  me  to  go  there,  at  least  till  the  Marquiss  got  an 
answer  to  his  letter;  that  the  affr.  ought  not  to  play  between  the 
two  countries;  He  said  that  what  had  passed  between  him  and 
the  Marquis  had  happen’d  casually  at  the  minister  of  foreign 
affrs. ; that  the  Marquiss  had  sent  the  extrL  courier  to  announce 
our  treaty,  & hearing  him  say  he  intended  to  send  one,  he  had 
suggested  the  idea  of  his  proposing  to  his  court  to  make  the  ces- 
sion, but  not  to  obtain  authority  to  treat  here  for  it.  I told  him 
that  after  the  arrangement  made  by  our  gov1,  with  respect  to 
Spu.,  the  affair  ought  to  have  its  course  in  the  train  in  which  it 
was  plac’d  by  it:  that  I could  not  see  any  benefit  to  be  derived 
from  application  of  the  ambassador  of  Spain  to  his  court  in  the 
manner  stated  by  Mr.  Livingston,  especially  if  I was  to  go  there 


o 


16 


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u t * 


